S. HRG. 109302, PT.

Senate Hearings
Before the Committee on Appropriations

Legislative Branch
Appropriations
Fiscal Year

109

2007

th CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION

H.R. 5521

PART 2
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
CAPITOL GUIDE BOARD
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE
U.S. CAPITOL POLICE BOARD
U.S. SENATE

Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2007 (H.R. 5521)Part 2

S. HRG. 109302, PT. 2

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2007

HEARINGS
BEFORE A

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED NINTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ON

H.R. 5521
AN ACT MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH FOR
THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2007, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES

PART 2
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Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/index.html

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2006

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COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska
ROBERT C. BYRD, West Virginia
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania
DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico
PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont
CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri
TOM HARKIN, Iowa
MITCH MCCONNELL, Kentucky
BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland
CONRAD BURNS, Montana
HARRY REID, Nevada
RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama
HERB KOHL, Wisconsin
JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire
PATTY MURRAY, Washington
ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah
BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota
LARRY CRAIG, Idaho
DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California
KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas
RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois
MIKE DEWINE, Ohio
TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota
SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana
WAYNE ALLARD, Colorado
J. KEITH KENNEDY, Staff Director
TERRENCE E. SAUVAIN, Minority Staff Director

SUBCOMMITTEE

ON THE

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

WAYNE ALLARD, Colorado, Chairman

RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi
TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota
MIKE DEWINE, Ohio
ROBERT C. BYRD, West Virginia
(ex officio)
Professional Staff
CAROLYN E. APOSTOLOU
TERRENCE E. SAUVAIN (Minority)
DREW WILLISON (Minority)
NANCY OLKEWICZ (Minority)
Administrative Support
SARAH WILSON

(II)

CONTENTS
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LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2007
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 2006

U.S. SENATE,
APPROPRIATIONS,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 10:27 a.m., in room SD138, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Wayne Allard (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senator Allard.
SUBCOMMITTEE

OF THE

COMMITTEE

ON

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
STATEMENT OF JAMES H. BILLINGTON, LIBRARIAN OF CONGRESS;
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP PROGRAM
ACCOMPANIED BY:
DONALD L. SCOTT, DEPUTY LIBRARIAN OF CONGRESS
DANIEL P. MULHOLLAN, DIRECTOR, CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH
SERVICE
JULIA HUFF, CHIEF OF OPERATIONS, COPYRIGHT OFFICE
KURT CYLKE, DIRECTOR, BOOKS FOR THE BLIND AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED
KARL SCHORNAGEL, INSPECTOR GENERAL
STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Senator ALLARD. The subcommittee will come to order. I am

going to do the unprecedented thing and get us started ahead of
time, ahead of schedule. I am told we have our witnesses here, everybody of interest that is going to be present for the hearing. So
we will go ahead and get you seated for the proceeding, and we will
start out with my making a few comments and then we will call
on the first panelist to make their presentation.
We meet today to take testimony from Dr. James Billington, Librarian of Congress, on the Librarys budget request for fiscal year
2007. We welcome Dr. Billington, who is accompanied by Deputy
Librarian Don Scott, and the Librarys top team. The request for
appropriation totals $588 million, along with offsetting collections
of $40 million, for a total budget of $628 million, an increase of
about 4 percent over this years budget.
This is a relatively modest request and we appreciate that you
have not requested a large number of new projects and initiatives.
However, within the Architect of the Capitols (AOC) budget a total
of $102 million is requested for Library buildings and grounds, including a new $54 million logistics warehouse for the Library. This
appropriation request represents a 50 percent increase over the fis(1)

2
cal year 2006 budget for Library buildings and grounds and will be
very tough to accommodate.
In particular, questions have been raised as to whether the design for the warehouse is gold-plated and whether more cost-effective alternatives have been explored thoroughly.
Other issues we would like to be updated on today include the
status of the new National Audio-Visual Conservation Center
(NAVCC) in Culpeper, Virginia, which I had the opportunity to
visit in December; plans for converting the books for the blind and
physically handicapped to digital format; and the ongoing realignment of the Congressional Research Service.
Dr. Billington will also submit testimony for the record as chairman of the Open World Leadership Center. This program is slated
for a $14.4 million budget, a $540,000 increase of 4 percent over
the 2006 level.
Those are my opening comments. Now we will go to the panel
that we have before us. I will call on Dr. Billington for his testimony, and also welcome General Scott. It is good to have you with
us this morning.
OPENING STATEMENT OF THE LIBRARIAN

Dr. BILLINGTON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I really appreciate

the opportunity to present the Library of Congress fiscal 2007
budget request to the subcommittee. I have provided details of the
Librarys accomplishments and goals in my written statement. We
have approached this budget submission keenly aware of the fiscal
challenges that this subcommittee, as well as the Congress as a
whole, faces, Mr. Chairman.
The Congress and the Library faces unprecedented challenges
itself if it is to sustain in the exploding digital age its historic mission of acquiring, preserving, and making accessible the worlds
largest and most globally inclusive collection of human knowledge.
That mission has never been more important for our service to the
Congress or for our overall national needs than it is now in the
midst of the information age and the globalization process.
WORKFORCE TRANSFORMATION

In order to sustain high-quality services at a time of radical

change in the ways knowledge is communicated and developed, the
Library must undertake an institutional workforce transformation.
Sixty-five percent of our budget is for people; 40 percent of our
workforce will be eligible to retire by the year 2010. We need
knowledge navigators imbued with a new set of skills, in many
cases capable of seamlessly integrating digital materials with books
and other traditional artifactual items, books and so forth, in order
to provide users with comprehensive and objective knowledge that
is useable and the practical wisdom that has always been a part
of our democratic function.
The Library is already leading the national effort to archive the
Internet, an enormous task, and we must help develop standards
for the electronic sharing of bibliographic records, just as the Library has historically done for the print world with its cataloguing
records.

3
Incidentally, we catalogued more than 313,000 books and periodicals last year, more than ever before in the Librarys history. So
the traditional needs continue as the digital demands explode.
The Library must begin its transformation of functions, facilities,
and people with the reallocation of existing resources. Our current
process of analysis and planning adheres to the spirit of the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) and we will produce
in calendar year 2007 a comprehensive strategic plan from which
the budget submission for fiscal year 2009 will be derived, and the
extended nature of resource needs for 2013 will be outlined. This
planning process is already informing our budget process, but that
is the schedule on which it will be formally implemented.
NATIONAL AUDIO-VISUAL CONSERVATION CENTERCULPEPER

The 4.1 percent increase we request for fiscal 2007 is almost entirely for mandatory pay and price level increases. Our fiscal year
2007 request for the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in
Culpeper, Virginia, represents a decrease of $1.2 million from the
fiscal year 2006 request. This project is progressing well. We expect
to complete construction and begin moving collections and staff in
May of this year.
The unique facility will allow us to preserve more quickly and effectively hundreds of thousands of items in our audiovisual collection that are a critically important part of Americas cultural heritage, but very vulnerable to degradation and very much in need of
calibrated conservation, which we will be able to provide with the
largest and most up to date such facility in the world.
This project would not have been possible without the financial
support of the Congress and an unusually generous private funding
from David Woodley Packard and the Packard Humanities Institute.
ACQUISITIONS BUDGET REQUEST

We are very grateful for the additional resources we were provided in the past two fiscal years for acquisitions, but we are still
falling behind in our all-important current acquisitions, which is
the absolute core requirement of this institution so that it can
properly serve the Congress and the Nation.
In fiscal year 2007 I respectfully but urgently ask that the Congress continue supporting our acquisitions with an additional $2
million. These funds will allow us to continue collecting materials
that we uniquely bring from all areas of the world, particularly
from lesser known and lesser understood regions that are becoming
increasingly important for our Nation, both for economic and security needs. It is important that we sustain the schedule that we
have established and have been falling behind on for acquisitions.
OTHER BUDGET PRIORITIES

But beyond these two important ongoing priorities, we have limited our budget request to three new projects, all of which total less
than $2 million: $1 million for the Copyright Office to begin a
record preservation project, an initiative requested by Congress in
fiscal 2005; $781,000 to begin our workforce transformation by en-

4
hancing the staff digital competencies, career development, and recruitment; and $150,000 to begin preparing a major exhibition in
2009 marking the bicentennial of Abraham Lincolns birth. This
total project will cost $1.4 million, will include a traveling exhibit,
and will be a major effort for this important milestone.
LOGISTICS CENTER

Let me mention finally, as you brought up, the request in the Architect of the Capitols budget for $54.2 million to construct a Library logistics center at Fort Meade. I understand and sympathize
with the subcommittees concern regarding the cost of this facility
and I will be working with the Architect of the Capitol to find ways
to reduce its cost. This facility is critically needed for the Librarys
day to day distribution and logistics needs and will provide a longterm cost saving to the Government by consolidating costly and
outmoded storage space from three locations into one modern, safer
and more secure location.
PREPARED STATEMENTS

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would be happy to answer any questions.

[The statements follow:]
PREPARED STATEMENTS

OF

JAMES H. BILLINGTON

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

I appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today to discuss the past accomplishments and future goals of the Library of Congress in the context of our fiscal
year 2007 budget request. I would like to thank this Committee for the strong support it has always shown the Librarys programs, and I ask for your support again
to ensure that the Library maintains its prestigious place as the worlds largest repository of human knowledge and the main research arm of the United States Congress.
With all the unique distinction that this institution has achieved in the print
world, it now faces the unprecedented challenge of sustaining its leadership amidst
the revolutionary changes of the digital world. Information-seekers now have many
(and often more convenient) ways of finding what they need. But they are often
overwhelmed or misled by the profusion of unfiltered and often inaccurate information on the World Wide Web. The Library of Congress must redefine its role in this
new environment. This institution-wide process is now underwayand will be embedded in the new strategic plan that we are developing for the entire Library for
20082013.
The budget request we have submitted to you includes the following basic assumptions:
The Library of Congress must continue to build comprehensive, world-wide collections in all formats so that Members of Congress, scholars, school students,
and the American people will have access to valid, high-quality information for
their work, their research, and their civic participation.
A comprehensive institutional workforce transformation will be required for
staff to continue providing the highest levels of service to the Congress and to
the public.
There is no change in the Librarys historic mission of acquiring, preserving,
and making its materials accessible and useful to the Congress and the nation.
The aim is to blend the new digital materials into the traditional artifactual collections so that knowledge and information can be objectively and comprehensively provided by an integrated library.
The transformation of functions, of facilities, and of people must begin with a
reallocation of existing resources. The current process of analysis and planning
will produce, in the course of calendar 2006, the strategic plan that will determine the extent and nature of resource needs for future budget submissions.

5
THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS OF TODAY

Library of Congress collections are made up of more than 132 million artifactual
items in more than 470 languages including: 30 million books (among them more
than 5,000 printed before the year 1500); 14 million photographs; 5.2 million maps;
3 million audio materials; 981,000 films, television, and video items; 5.3 million
pieces of music; 59 million manuscripts; and hundreds of thousands of scientific and
government documents.
And these collections continue to grow. More than 13,000 items are added to the
Librarys collections every day. These materials are organized, cataloged, and served
to readers in on-site reading rooms and through cultural programs and exhibitions.
A steadily increasing number of materials are made available free of charge on the
Internet.
The Librarys collections gather in not only regularly published materials, but arcane reports that have limited distribution, international ephemera that illuminate
other cultures and socio-political movements, and special collections that have been
carefully assessed by our curators and acquired by our donors. Among the many
new materials acquired by the Library in fiscal year 2005 are:
The unique Jay I. Kislak Collection of nearly 4,000 items documenting the early
history of the Americas.
38,555 individual oral histories collected from interviews with U.S. war veterans.
Original music manuscripts of Felix Mendelssohn, Jerome Kern, George
Gershwin, and Woody Guthrie.
The Bernard Krisher Collection, containing 450 taped interviews with Asian
dignitaries documenting major developments in Asia from 19621983.
The personal and professional papers of the late Chief Executive Officer and
Publisher of the Washington Post, Katharine Graham.
The Cuban Exile Collection, 234 microfilm reels of materials documenting the
Cuban-American experience.
Factiva, a full-text online database of publications and up-to-the minute reports
and news focusing on global developments and business from 118 countries in
22 languages.
A collection of 454 charts of the coast of China from the Chinese Navy Headquarters, the Navigation Guarantee Department. A complete set of modern hydrographic charts of the Chinese coastline and areas of the South China Sea.
The American Colony of Jerusalem Collection, a Christian society formed in Jerusalem in 1881 by an American, Horatio Gates Spafford, and his wife Anna
Lawson Spafford.
Library of Congress services include:
Fulfilling our priority mission of service to the Congress through the objective
research and analysis done exclusively for the Congress by the Congressional
Research Service. Our Law Library also largely serves the Congress. Overall,
the Library provides a wide range of services from analysis on current public
policy issues to responses to constituent requests.
In fiscal year 2005, the Library performed the following major services to the
Congress and its constituents:
Delivered more than 900,000 replies to members of Congress, covering nearly
200 current policy areas and providing access to 1,400 regularly updated research products.
Registered about 532,000 copyright claims.
Circulated nearly 24 million books and magazines free of charge to the blind
and physically handicapped.
Assisted local libraries all over the nation by cataloging nearly 313,000 books
and serialsthe highest number in the Librarys history.
Library of Congress digital leadership includes:
Providing free internet access to its entire catalog, to more than 10 million primary documents of American history and culture, to a growing body of similarly
unique and multi-medial materials from six other major national libraries, and
to extensive information about the Congress. In fiscal year 2005, our web site,
www.loc.gov, recorded more than 3.8 billion hitsa 14 percent increase in usage
over fiscal year 2004.
Coordinating the development and implementation of a comprehensive national
plan mandated by the Congress for preserving important but often ephemeral
materials on the Internet. The Library has enlisted eight national consortia involving 36 institutions across the country to share in this massive project. The
Library has already collected 128 terabytes; and our partners are expected to

6
collect an estimated 100 terabytes. The materials include digital maps, photographs, TV programming, news, and datasets.
BUILDING THE LIBRARY FOR THE FUTURE

The Librarys Vision and Strategic Plan

The Librarys vision is to sustain in the digital world of the 21st century its historic mission of acquiring, preserving, and making maximally accessible to the public and useful for the Congress a universal collection of human knowledge. The challenge now is to bring the best of the traditional library into the digital environment.
This will require holding fast to the principles of equitable access and long-term
preservation while seamlessly integrating new digital materials with traditional
artifactual items and helping develop standards and protocols for the electronic
sharing of bibliographic records just as the Library did for the print world with its
cataloging records.
The Library has developed a Library-wide framework for program assessment of
every division and support office. Congressional support has already enabled us to
reengineer copyright functions and to create a National Audio-Visual Conservation
Center. And we are developing new roles for key staff to become objective knowledge navigators who can make knowledge useful from both the artifactual and the
digital world.
The institution is undertaking a comprehensive strategic planning process that
adheres to the spirit of GPRA and will guide us in what will have to be a major
transformation of our workforce. We must find ways to transfer the widely recognized skills of our best traditional librarians on to the more broadly and democratically accessible Web and into K12 education which is making increasing use of the
Librarys online resources. We must continue to integrate and be open to new technology and best business practices library-wideand to maximize fairness and diversity in building the workforce of the future.
This work will continue in fiscal year 2006, culminating in a comprehensive new
strategic plan for fiscal year 20082013, from which all future budget requests will
be derived. Our fiscal year 2007 request already reflects the Librarys improved
strategic planning process and has led us to ask for no new additional FTEs and
a historically low 4 percent budgetary increase despite the many challenges that the
Library will face in fiscal year 2007.
THE LIBRARYS FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST

In fiscal year 2007, the Library requests a total budget of $628.465 million
($588.131 million in net appropriations and $40.334 million in authority to use receipts), an increase of $24.842 million or 4.1 percent above the fiscal year 2006 level.
The total includes $23.969 million in mandatory pay and price level increases and
$4.896 million in program increases, offset by $4.023 million in non-recurring costs.
Requested funding supports 4,258 full-time equivalents (FTEs), a net decrease of
44 FTEs below the fiscal year 2006 level of 4,302.
The Librarys programs and activities are funded by four salaries and expenses
(S&E) appropriations which support management of the Library, the National and
Law Library Services, Copyright administration, Congressional Research Service,
and Library Services to the Blind and Physically Handicapped.
Fiscal year 2007 funding is allocated as follows:
Library of Congress, S&E ($409.294 million/2,902 FTEs), which includes:
National Library ($312.590 million/2,264 FTEs)
National LibraryBasic
Purchase of Library Materials (GENPAC)
Office of Strategic Initiatives
Cataloging Distribution Service
Law Library ($14.026 million/101 FTEs)
Management Support Services ($82.723 million/537 FTEs)
Copyright Office, S&E ($59.189 million/523 FTEs)
Congressional Research Service, S&E ($104.279 million/705 FTEs)
Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, S&E ($55.703 million/128
FTEs)
THE LIBRARYS FUNDING PRIORITIES

Mandatory Pay and Price Level Increases

The Library is requesting an additional $23.969 million to maintain current services. This is the amount needed to support the annualization of the fiscal year 2006
pay raise, the fiscal year 2007 pay raise, within grade increases, and unavoidable

7
inflation and vendor price increases. These funds are needed simply to sustain current business operations and to prevent a reduction in staff that would severely affect the Librarys ability to manage its programs in support of its mission and strategic objectives.
Unfunded Mandates
The Library is requesting $2.171 million for one unfunded mandate: the Department of State (DOS) Capital Security Cost-Sharing Program.
In fiscal year 2005, the DOS, mandated by the Executive branch, began its 14year program to finance the construction of approximately 150 embassy compounds,
requiring increasing contributions from all agencies with an overseas presence, including the Library. The Library has argued that the DOS methodology for assessing agencies is unfair since it is based on the number of overseas personnel rather
than on actual services or space provided by DOS in diplomatic facilities. The Librarys yearly assessment was $1.2 million in fiscal year 2005 and $2.4 million in
fiscal year 2006. The proposed bill for fiscal year 2007 is $4.572 million, an increase
of $2.171 million. If funding is not provided for the next phase of the program, the
Library will have insufficient resources to operate its overseas offices. This would
result in the curtailmentand in some cases terminationof international acquisitions programs in areas that are of increasing importance to the nation (Islamabad,
Cairo, Jakarta, Nairobi, New Delhi and Rio de Janeiro). The Library continues to
negotiate with the DOS and will alert the Committees if DOS agrees to any downward adjustments of their assessment.
Major Ongoing Projects
The Library is requesting $794,000 for two ongoing major projects that are either
in their last year of development or on a time-sensitive schedule that must be maintained if the entire project is to succeed.
National Audio-Visual Conservation Center (NAVCC), Culpeper, VA.A fiveyear plan for the completion of NAVCC was included in the Librarys fiscal year
2004 budget. Fiscal year 2007 represents the fourth year in the Librarys fiveyear cost model, which is adjusted annually to align with shifts in the construction schedule of the Packard Humanities Institute and the Librarys occupancy
schedule. In 2005, the Phase 1 Central Plant was turned over to the AOC and
the Collections Building to the Library. In 2006, construction will be completed
and the entire property transferred to the government. Staff relocations will
take place, as will the procurement and integration of digital preservation
equipment and systems within the NAVCCs audio-visual conservation facility.
Funding is needed in fiscal year 2007 to continue purchasing equipment for the
facility as well as for operations support. Total requested fiscal year 2007 funding of $13.9 million reflects a net decrease of $1.206 million and 6 FTEs from
fiscal year 2006.
Acquisitions (GENPAC/Electronic Materials).Advances in technology have
opened opportunities for the Library to acquire materials from parts of the
world about which, until recently, there had been little knowledge. National interest, especially with respect to security and trade, dictates that we acquire
emerging electronic publications and other difficult-to-find resources that document other cultures and nations. The GENPAC appropriation, which funds the
purchase of all-important current collections materials, declined precipitously in
its purchasing power during the 1990s. Consistent with our fiscal year 2005
2006 budget requests for a multi-year, $4.2 million base increase to the
GENPAC budget, the Library is requesting the next incremental adjustment of
$2 million, which will bring the total base adjustment up to $3.3 million. Funding is needed to help keep pace with the greatly increased cost of serial and
electronic materials that risks seriously eroding the foundation of the many
services provided by the Library to the Congress and the nation.
New Projects
The Library is requesting $1.931 million for three new critical initiatives as follows:
Copyright Records Preservation.A six-year, $6 million initiative is needed to
image digitally 70 million pages of pre-1978 public records that are deteriorating, jeopardizing the mandatory preservation of, and access to, these unique
records of American creativity. In fiscal year 2007, the Library is requesting the
first $1 million, which will permit the scanning of 10 million page images.
Workforce Transformation Project.Renewal and development of the Library
workforce is essential to retrain staff with the necessary skills for the digital
age, and to capture for the future the vast knowledge of large numbers of experienced staff who are near retirement. In fiscal year 2007, the Library will begin

8
a program to enhance digital competencies, leadership skills, career development, recruitment, and other workforce counseling and services. These activities
are particularly important for sustaining the Librarys commitment to a diverse
workforce. Funding of $781,000 is requested, and will support initiatives to:
Define and develop digital competencies
Build an aspiring leaders program for GS 59 employees
Enhance Library-wide training through the Center for Learning and Development
Create a summer intern recruitment program and a talent pool for permanent
employment
Expand interpreting services.
Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Exhibition.The Library is planning a major
Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Exhibition in 2009. The exhibition will be a centerpiece of the nationwide celebration to mark the bicentennial of Lincolns
birth. The Library will draw on its unparalleled Lincoln materials to focus on
Lincolns rise to national prominence and the thinking and writing that underlie his career. A total of $1.442 million will be needed for this project, of which
$150,000 is requested in fiscal year 2007. The balance of $1.292 million will be
requested in fiscal year 2008. Multi-year (3 year) authority is requested for the
fiscal year 2007 funding. Funding will support the design of the exhibition and
travel needed to visit other venues and/or other institutions that will be lending
materials to the Library exhibition.
Other Program Changes
Congress created and passed the Library of Congress Digital Collections and Educational Curricula Act of 2005. Beginning in fiscal year 2006, the Act moved the administrative and programmatic ownership of the Adventure of the American Mind
(AAM) from the Educational and Research Consortium to the Library.
While no additional funding is requested in fiscal year 2007 for the Librarys new
AAM National Program, the Library is requesting a change in the way the base
funding of $5.801 million is used. Whereas this entire amount was earmarked for
grants in fiscal year 2006, we would like the fiscal year 2007 funding to support
both administrative ($1.791 million) needs and grant awards ($4.01 million). In addition, the Library will begin developing standards-based, field-tested curricula,
using a train-the-trainer model to create a network of partners from all parts of the
country.
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOLLIBRARY OF CONGRESS BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS

The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is responsible for the structural and mechanical care and maintenance of the Librarys buildings and grounds. In coordination
with the Library, the AOC is requesting an fiscal year 2007 budget of $102.2 million, of which $62.265 million supports projects specifically requested by the Library. Included is $54.2 million to construct a 166,000 square foot logistics warehouse at Fort Meade, replacing and consolidating current long-term and temporary
facilities leased and maintained by the Library.
The significant increase over the fiscal year 2006 budget request level is the result
of deferring maintenance and upgrades to the Librarys buildings on Capitol Hill
and the delays in the Fort Meade construction plan. Costs are higher because more
maintenance and upgrade projects need to be completed concurrently. Deferments
and delays have created longer lists of projects. The cost increase is compounded
by inflationary pressures and by the steadily growing risks in health, safety, and
security to the Librarys staff and collections. The cost of maintenance and upgrades
will increase exponentially if the Library cannot stop, or at least slow down, the rate
of deterioration of its buildings, and return to its construction plan and schedule.
PROPOSED CHANGES TO LEGISLATIVE LANGUAGE

The Library has proposed language to improve employment options elsewhere in

the Federal Government for Library staff. The first provision confers competitive
status to Library employees who have successfully completed their probationary period at the Librarythe basic eligibility to be noncompetitively selected to fill vacancies in the competitive service of the Federal Government. This will enable Library
staff to apply for positions in the executive branch on an equal footing with career
executive branch employees. A related provision would enhance the employability of
Library employees displaced because of a reduction in force (RIF) or failure to accept
a transfer to an alternative work location. This provision would give staff who have
been separated, priority for selection for competitive service positions comparable to
that enjoyed by separated employees from other federal agencies.

9
We also propose new appropriation language to address the requirement specified
in the Cooperative Acquisitions Program Revolving Fund legislation (CAP), Public
Law 10555, that the revolving fund receive its own audit by March 31 following
the end of each fiscal year. The Library requests that the March 31 audit requirement be rescinded and that the CAP be subject to the same audit requirement as
the Librarys other revolving funds.
The fiscal year 2006 administrative provision limiting the Librarys assessment
for embassy construction to equal to or less than the unreimbursed value of the
services provided to the Library on State Department diplomatic facilities must also
be maintained in fiscal year 2007.
CONCLUSION

The Library of Congress priorities expressed in the fiscal year 2007 budget request have a common theme: that of enhancing and transforming the staff, the collections they manage, and the buildings that house them. These requests will make
it possible for the Library to improve the quality of its service in keeping with the
high ideal of a knowledge-based democracy and a creativity-enhancing society. This
budget will help us prepare for the many changes needed to sustain and expand the
opportunities for a free people to benefit from an open and universal stream of
knowledge and information. The Library looks forward to working with and for the
Congress as we seek to build these opportunities in fiscal year 2007, and in the
years ahead.

OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate the opportunity to

present testimony on the Open World Leadership Centers budget request for fiscal
year 2007. The Center, whose board of trustees I chair, conducts the only foreignvisitor program in the U.S. legislative branch and sponsors the largest U.S.-Russia
inbound exchange. All of us at Open World are very grateful for our home and support in the legislative branch and for congressional participation in our programs
and on our governing board. The Consolidated Appropriations Act passed in December 2004 made the chair of this subcommittee ex officio a member of Open Worlds
board, and my fellow trustees and I are pleased and honored to have you join us,
Mr. Chairman. We look forward to working with you as we make important decisions on the future of Open World.
During an important year of assessment and change, the Board and staff began
to review all aspects of the program in order to produce in fiscal year 2006 a comprehensive strategic plan for the future. This review is being led by Board member
James Collins, who played a key role in launching the program when he was Ambassador to Russia.
Geraldine Otremba completed her outstanding leadership of the able and dedicated staff of the Center in September 2005. Aletta Waterhouse, who had also done
great work with the program from its beginning, served very well as Interim Executive Director. The Board will name a new Executive Director in early spring of 2006.
The Centers budget request of $14.4 million (Appendix A) for fiscal year 2007 reflects an increase of $0.54 million (4.0 percent) over fiscal year 2006 funding. This
funding will enable the Center to continue its proven mission of hosting young leaders from Russia; expand its important program for Ukraine; and conduct smaller
programs for such other countries as the Board of Trustees will approve in consultation with the Appropriations Committees. The budget increase over fiscal year 2006
is due to increases of salaries and benefits (11 percent of increase), airfares and impact of changing exchange rates (60 percent of increase), and domestic transportation, per diem and other programmatic costs (29 percent).
In 2005, Open World welcomed its 10,000th participant in its sixth year of operation. We began calendar year 2005 by organizing a major post-Orange Revolution
exchange to six U.S. states for Ukrainian judges, election experts, NGO managers,
and journalists. We ended the year with a local-government study tour in Maine for
a delegation from the Solovetsky Islands, home to one of the Soviet Unions first
prison camps and one of Russias greatest monasteries.
Open World brought 1,552 Russians and Ukrainians to the United States in calendar 2005 to work with their American counterparts while experiencing our democracy and civil society. The Chief Justice of the Russian Supreme Court had planning
sessions at the U.S. Supreme Court on U.S.-Russian judicial cooperation; two teams
of Russian child-trauma experts helping Beslan victims consulted with Pennsylvania
social agencies on their mental and social support services, and a delegation of

10
Ukrainian journalists shared their experiences during the Orange Revolution at a
forum in Cincinnati.
Open Worlds plans for calendar year 2006 include programs on accountable governance for officials from municipalities created under Russias recent law on local
self-governance; expanding our two-year-old exchange for Ukrainian leaders; and
providing programs on elections to both Russian and Ukrainian leaders. We will
also continue our rule of law program, which has benefited so much from the involvement of U.S. Supreme Court justices and many other prominent members of
the American judiciary, including Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sidney B. Brooks
of Denver, Colorado, and U.S. District Judge Michael M. Mihm of Peoria, Illinois.
As I discuss below, this calendar year the Centers boardin consultation with the
members of the Appropriations Committeesmust also make important decisions
about whether and where Open World should expand in Eurasia.
Program Leadership
Senator Ted Stevens (AK) serves as honorary chairman of the Open World Leadership Centers board. The congressionally appointed members are Senate Majority
Leader Bill Frist (TN), Senator Carl Levin (MI), and Representative Robert E. Bud
Cramer (AL). The second congressionally appointed seat reserved for a member of
the House of Representatives is currently vacant. Public Law 108447, as amended
by Public Law 10913, added to the Board the chair of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives or designee and the chair of the Subcommittee
on Legislative Branch of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate. Former
U.S. Ambassador to Russia James F. Collins, Walter Scott, Jr., Chairman of Level
3 Communications, former Representative Amo Houghton, and former U.S. Ambassador to Spain George Argyros are the current citizen members. I sit on the Board
in my capacity as Librarian of Congress, and I currently serve as chairman. The
Board of Trustees met on December 5, 2005, and reviewed the budget request and
program plans presented below.
Program Objectives:
Open World program enhances professional relationships and understanding between political and civic leaders of participating countries and the United States.
It is designed to enable emerging young leaders from the selected countries to:
build mutual understanding with their U.S. counterparts and share approaches
to common challenges;
observe U.S. government, business, volunteer, and community leaders carrying
out their daily responsibilities;
experience how the separation of powers, checks and balances, freedom of the
press, and other key elements of Americas democratic system make the government more accountable and transparent;
develop an understanding of the U.S. free enterprise system;
learn how U.S. citizens organize and take initiative to address social and civic
needs;
participate in American family and community activities; and
establish lasting professional and personal ties with their U.S. hosts and counterparts.
Open World provides the highest-caliber program for the U.S. visit so that Open
World participants return to their countries with a meaningful understanding of
Americas democracy and market economy.
Open World has refined and focused on a few key themes central to democracybuilding in order to improve the quality and focus of the U.S. program.
The catalytic effect of the 10-day U.S. stay is extended by fostering continued
post-visit communication between participants and their American hosts and contacts, their fellow Open World alumni, and alumni of other USG-sponsored exchange programs.
In calendar 2005, Russian alumni participated in 168 interregional conferences,
workshops, meetings, and professional seminars sponsored by Open World. A major
conference for the programs Lithuanian alumni was held in the capital city of
Vilnius, and three events were held for alumni in Ukraine.
Open Worlds multilingual website with online forums (and assisted Russian/
English translation for cross-cultural communication) helps maintain communication among delegates, American hosts, and other interested parties. Open World
also operates two listservs for Russian alumni, one with news of grants, competitions, and other sources of financial support, the other with weekly updates on Open
World news and announcements and opportunities for cooperation and partnership
with fellow alumni. All alumni activities and the website are supported through private funding.

11
Measures of Success
In addition to conducting the qualitative assessments described above, the Center
also tracks quantitative program performance measures to ensure that Open World
is meeting its mission of focusing on a geographically and professionally broad crosssection of emerging leaders who might not otherwise have the opportunity to visit
the United States:
Delegates have come from all the political regions of Russia and virtually all
those of Ukraine, Lithuania, and Uzbekistan.
84 percent of Russian participants live outside Moscow and St. Petersburg.
More than 5,000 federal, regional, and local government officials have participated, including 156 members of parliament and 935 judges.
The average age of Open World delegates is 38.
92 percent of delegates are first-time visitors to the United States.
Only 12.5 percent of delegates report having above average or better Englishlanguage skills. (Several U.S. exchange programs require some English-language skills. By not requiring knowledge of English, Open World is able to
choose from a much larger candidate pool of young leaders. Interpretation is
provided for all Open World delegations.)
49 percent of delegates are women. (Women did not have significant leadership
opportunities in the Soviet Union.)
The distribution of delegates among Russias seven super-regions roughly
matches that of the countrys general population.
Open World in America
Open World delegates are hosted by a large and dedicated group of American citizens who live in cities, towns, and rural communities throughout the United States:
Since Open Worlds inception in 1999, more than 5,300 U.S. families have
hosted participants in more than 1,500 communities in all 50 states.
In 2005, the 204 locally based Open World host organizations in 147 congressional districts included universities and community colleges, library systems,
Rotary clubs and other service organizations, sister-city associations, courts,
and nonprofits.
American hosts generosity toward and enthusiasm for Open World are a mainstay of the program. In 2005, interested host communities demand for Open World
visitors exceeded supply by 34 percent. Americans enthusiasm for the Open World
Program is reflected in their generous giving. In 2005, Americans gave an estimated
$1.9 million worth of in-kind contributions through volunteer home hosting of delegates, a ratio of one dollar in contributions for every seven dollars in appropriated
funds.
Visiting delegates, in turn, have impacted American communities by sharing ideas
with their professional counterparts, university faculty and students, governors and
state legislators, American war veterans, and other American citizens in a variety
of forums such as group discussions, Rotary Club breakfasts, and town hall meetings.
During a 2005 Open World visit to Appleton, Wisconsin, for example, a Russian
delegate from Kurgan Region, which borders Kazakhstan, proposed an idea at a Rotary club event. Since there were so many World War II veterans in attendance,
the delegate suggested an exchange of letters between Wisconsin World War II veterans and their Kurgan counterparts. One such letter from a member of the Appleton-Kurgan Sister City Program reads, in part:
WWII efforts created a significant result in history and provided a great victory
which was achieved with the help of the Russians for the benefit of the world. Many
people, especially among our Russian friends, lost family members . . . Some of my
schoolmates lost their lives as well. They made the ultimate sacrifice from which
all of us in the years since the war have benefited.
Students from Appleton North High School became interested in the correspondence and decided to interview local veterans, record their stories digitally, and make
them available online. The letters also inspired an op-ed article in the local paper
on Memorial Day last year and will be displayed at the Appleton Public Library.
We understand the U.S. Consulate in Yekaterinburg as well as Fox Cities Online
are interested in displaying the letters on their websites. In short, the Open World
delegations visit to Wisconsin is having a wide ripple effect.
Two other examples of interchanges that benefited the American host communities come from Urbana, Illinois, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In Urbana, a visiting Open World rule of law delegate made a detailed presentation on the differences between the Russian and American court systems to the Champaign County circuit court judges, states attorney, and public defender; this was followed up

12
by a lively question and answer session. And in Harrisburg, the two Open World
teams of child-trauma experts working with Beslan victims shared their harrowing
experiences and the latest information on Russian child-trauma theory and practice
during presentations to social-service providers and community leaders.
As a result of the Open World Program, American professional leaders are also
expanding their own international networks, opening up multiple channels of dialogue to integrate new ideas and values. Today one of the best ways to connect with
the Supreme Court of Ukraine might be through Charles R. Simpson III, a federal
district court judge in Louisville, Kentucky. One of Judge Simpsons 2005 Open
World delegates, Ukrainian appellate judge Tatyana Valentinovna Shevchenko, recently e-mailed him with the news that she had just been appointed to her countrys
high court.
The Importance of Russia
The Board believes that Open World should maintain a high level of hosting from
Russia. As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stated in a February 12, 2006 interview, we must challenge Russia as a whole . . . the Russian people, to fully integrate [democratic institutional] values into their future. Michael McFaul of the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace recently asserted the need for exchanges, connections, anything that increases connectivity between Russian and
American society.
The Open World Program is playing a growing role in helping Russias emerging
leaders experience first hand the workings of our democratic institutions to. The
ranks of Russian Open World participants include:
719 senior regional administrators and 163 regional legislators;
more than 1,000 mayors, city council members, municipal departmental heads,
and executive-level city officials;
887 judges;
588 NGO directors; and
188 print editors and 68 heads of TV and radio stations.
In addition, the Open World experience has contributed to the establishment or
strengthening of 65 sister-organization and Rotary International partner relations,
including 17 partnerships between U.S. and Russian legal communities.
Calendar Year 2005 Activities
Russia
Among the 1,410 Russian participants in calendar year 2005, delegates came from
a wide range of regional ethnic groups, and had hosting experiences in 47 U.S.
states and the District of Columbia. Open Worlds hosting themes were economic development, the environment, health and social services, rule of law, women as leaders, and, for the first time, local governance. Under the health/social services theme,
several Open World teams concentrated on AIDS prevention and treatment, disability issues, or substance abuse prevention and treatment. Open World also hosted
two delegations of Russian nonproliferation specialists who worked with their counterparts at two U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories.
A highlight of our 2005 Russia program was a rule of law exchange hosted by
Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sidney B. Brooks of Denver, Colorado, for a high-level
delegation of Russian Supreme Commercial Court justices and regional commercialcourt chief judges. The Russians held talks with federal and state judges and University of Denver law professors, observed court proceedings, took a workshop on alternative dispute resolution, and were briefed by the state attorney general on his
offices role and structure. The delegates also attended the U.S. district courts weekly press briefing and analyzed it with court staff afterward. Thanks to the relationships established by this and earlier commercial-court exchanges, the head of Russias Supreme Commercial Court will visit the United States later this month on
a trip supported by the Department of State and Open World.
As a result of legislation passed in 2003, the Open World Russia program now
also includes up-and-coming arts administrators and artists in a range of media
important leaders to the development of a democratic society. Support from the National Endowment for the Arts enables the Russian Cultural Leaders Program to
offer two- and three-week residencies to these participants. The 2005 cultural program were brought Russian writers to the University of Mississippi to participate
in the Oxford Conference on the Book, and brought Russian documentary
filmmakers to the Athens Center for Film and Video in Athens, Ohio, for an intensive residency.

13
Ukraine
Ukraine was selected in 2003 for an Open World program because of its strategic
position in Eurasia, its large and educated population, and its important potential
contribution to regional stability.
The 142 young Ukrainian leaders that Open World welcomed in calendar year
2005 were hosted in 14 states and the District of Columbia. The theme for Ukraine
in 2005 was civil society, with subthemes in independent media, electoral processes, NGO development, and rule of law. Open World initiated a judge-to-judge
program similar to its highly successful judicial exchange with Russia. Forty-two
Ukrainian judges, including a Supreme Court justice and two members of the Supreme Commercial Court, were hosted in eight different states. In a number of the
American communities that hosted Ukrainian leaders, the impact of the Orange
Revolution was discussed in presentations, roundtables, and panels.
The September 13, 2005 mayoral primary in Cincinnati provided the backdrop for
one of this years most successful Ukrainian exchanges: a study trip on American
media and elections for a delegation of print and broadcast journalists. Hosted locally by the Cincinnati-Ukraine Partnership, the delegates observed mayoral candidates being interviewed by the press, spent a half day with key editors of the Cincinnati Enquirer, had a workshop on public relations and the press, and observed
balloting at the Board of Elections on election night. They also sat in on newspaper
editorial meetings and a live television news broadcast, allowing them to feel, as one
delegation member said, like part of the editorial team.
Open World 2006 and Plans for 2007
For 2006, the Board of Trustees approved continuing the successful Open World
programs for Russia (civic, cultural, and rule of law) and the rule of law and civic
programs for Ukraine. I appointed a panel to assess and make recommendations for
Board consideration on four major issues: (1) whether Open World should expand
to other countries, and if so, which, (2) whether country programs should be linked
by region, (3) what the scope and nature of alumni programs should be, and (4)
what improvements could be made to the Russia and Ukraine programs. The panel
will submit an overall strategic plan for board approval by June 2006. The Board
will notify the Appropriations Committee of any countries selected for new Open
World programs. Any program expansion will be initiated in calendar 2006 and fully
implemented in 2007. By September 30, 2006, Open World will finish implementing
the financial management and administrative recommendations in the Government
Accountability Offices March 2004 report on Open World.
The budget request maintains hosting and other programmatic activities at a
level of approximately 1,400 participants total. Actual allocations of hosting to individual countries will be adjusted to conform to Board of Trustees recommendations
and consultation with the Appropriations Committees. The requested funding support is also needed for anticipated fiscal year 2007 pay increases and to cover the
Department of State Capital Security Cost Sharing charge for the Centers two Foreign National Staff.
Major categories of requested funding are:
Personnel Compensation and Benefits ($1.197 million)
Contracts ($8.48 millionawarded to U.S.-based entities) that include: Coordinating the delegate nomination and vetting process; obtaining visas and other
travel documents; arranging and paying for air travel; coordinating with grantees and placing delegates; and providing health insurance for participants.
Grants ($4.72 millionawarded to U.S. host organizations) that include the cost
of providing: Professional programming for delegates; meals outside of those
provided by home hosts; cultural activities; local transportation; professional interpretation; and administrative support.
CONCLUSION

The fiscal year 2007 budget request will enable the Open World Leadership Center to continue to make major contributions to an understanding of democracy, civil
society, and free enterprise in a region of vital importance to the Congress and the
nation. This Subcommittees interest and support have been essential ingredients in
Open Worlds success.
I thank the Subcommittee for its continued support of the Open World Program.

14
APPENDIX A.OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER BUDGETFISCAL YEAR 2007
Fiscal year 2007
estimated obligations

Description

11.1
12.1
21.0
22.0
23.0
24.0
25.1
26.0
31.0
41.0

Personnel Compensation .............................................................................................................................

Personnel Benefits ......................................................................................................................................
Travel ...........................................................................................................................................................
Transportation .............................................................................................................................................
Rent, Comm., Utilities .................................................................................................................................
Printing ........................................................................................................................................................
Other Services/Contracts .............................................................................................................................
Supplies .......................................................................................................................................................
Equipment ...................................................................................................................................................
Grants ..........................................................................................................................................................

$944,100
252,400
97,500
2,200
8,100
4,100
8,386,000
4,100
16,500
4,685,000

Total, fiscal year 2007 budget request .................................................................................................

14,400,000

PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

MARYBETH PETERS, THE REGISTER

OF

COPYRIGHTS

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to
present the Copyright Offices fiscal year 2007 budget request.
The Copyright Office is requesting the Committees approval of four program
changes for the Copyright BASIC appropriation. There are three offsetting collections authority changes and one in net appropriations. In offsetting collections, we
are requesting a $1,590,901 decrease in the Reengineering Program funding due to
fewer funds in the no year account, an $850,000 decrease due to a decrease in renewal receipts, and a $600,000 increase due to an overall increase in receipts from
other service fees. In new net appropriation authority, the Office requests $1 million
to digitally image the pre-1978 public records to mitigate the risk of loss and to
make them available online. I will discuss these requests in more detail, after I provide an overview of the Offices work and accomplishments.
REVIEW OF COPYRIGHT OFFICE WORK AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

The Copyright Offices mission is to promote creativity by sustaining an effective

national copyright system. We do this by administering the copyright law; providing
policy and legal assistance to the Congress, the administration, and the judiciary;
and by informing and educating the public about our nations copyright system. The
demands in these areas are growing and becoming more complex with the evolution
and increased use of digital technology.
I will briefly highlight some of the Offices current and past work and our plans
for fiscal year 2006.
Policy and Legal Work
We have continued to work closely with the Senate Committee on the Judiciary,
its Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, and its House counterpart. In May, I testified before the Senate Subcommittee on International Piracy of Intellectual Property, highlighting the fact that piracy is one of the most enduring copyright problems throughout the world and the Offices efforts, together with other Federal
agencies, to reduce piracy to the lowest levels possible.
I also testified twice last year on ways to modernize music licensing in a digital
world. In June, I testified before the House Subcommittee and in July, I testified
before the Senate Subcommittee. During the first hearing, I focused on the possibility of permitting music rights organizations to license on a consolidated basis
both the public performance right of a musical work as well as its reproduction and
distribution rights. In the second hearing, I considered alternative solutions to the
music licensing dilemma, including a blanket statutory license for digital phonorecord deliveries. These hearings and meetings with representatives of the affected
industries produced a consensus that Section 115 of the copyright law should be
modernized to reflect the needs and realities of the online world. However, there
was no agreement as to how such modernization should be structured and implemented. Further work is needed in this area and I will continue to work with the
interested parties and Congress on legislative solutions to the music licensing problem in this and the next fiscal year.
I testified before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary in September to examine
legal and policy issues in the wake of the Supreme Courts June 27, 2005, decision

15
in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd. which clarified the doctrine
of secondary liability as it would apply to those who offer products and services in
a way that induces others to engage in copyright infringement. I testified that the
Courts ruling seemed to strike an appropriate balance between the rights of copyright holders and the flexibility necessary to enable and encourage technologists to
continue to develop new products and, thus, there was no immediate need for new
legislation. I used the word seemed because, at the time of the hearing, only three
months had passed since the ruling and it was simply too early to tell whether
Grokster would provide sufficient guidance for the years and circumstances to come.
The Office implemented a new preregistration system, as required by the Family
Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005, Public Law 1099, within the statutory
six-month time frame. Preregistration of an unpublished work being prepared for
commercial distribution allows a copyright owner to bring an infringement action
before the authorized publication of the work and full registration, making it possible, upon full registration, to recover statutory damages and attorney fees. The
electronic preregistration filing system became operational on November 15, 2005.
The Office also conducted two studies in 2005. First, Senators Orrin Hatch and
Patrick Leahy requested that we examine the issue of orphan works, copyrighted
works whose owners are difficult or impossible to locate, to determine whether there
are compelling concerns that merit a legislative, regulatory or other solution; and
if so, what type of solution could effectively address these concerns without conflicting with the legitimate interests of authors and right holders. As part of our efforts to produce this study, the Office collected over 850 written comments from the
public and held roundtable meetings with dozens of interested parties in the summer of 2005 in both Washington, D.C. and Berkeley, CA. The Report on Orphan
Works was delivered to Congress in January 2006. Second, at the request of Congress, we have also conducted a study to examine the harm to copyright owners
whose programming is retransmitted by satellite carriers under a statutory license
in Section 119. This report was also delivered to Congress in January 2006.
In addition, the Office has initiated its triennial rulemaking on exceptions from
section 1201 prohibition on circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works and has received public comments. In addition, we will
conduct hearings in Washington, D.C. and Palo Alto, CA. to elicit further information from the public. The study will be concluded in fiscal year 2007, at which time,
I will make my recommendations to the Librarian of Congress on classes of works
that should be exempted from the section 1201 prohibition on circumvention.
We have also been actively involved in the implementation of the Copyright Royalty and Distribution Reform Act of 2004 (CRDRA), Public Law 108419, which became effective on May 31, 2005. This Act phases out the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panels (CARPs), a program administered by the Copyright Office, and replaces
them with a new Library program which is independent of the Copyright Office and
employs three full-time Copyright Royalty Judges (CRJs) and three staff. This organization is known as the Copyright Royalty Board. At the outset of the program,
I worked diligently with my colleagues to identify and recruit the three highly qualified individuals who the Librarian appointed to the Board in January 2006.
The primary responsibilities of the CRJs, as with the CARPs which preceded
them, are to set rates and terms for the various statutory licenses contained in the
Copyright Act and to determine the distribution of royalty fees collected by the
Copyright Office pursuant to certain of these licenses. The CRJs have the additional
responsibility to promulgate notice and recordkeeping regulations to administer
some of the statutory licenses. In accordance with the rate setting schedule set forth
in the law, the Board has initiated three rate setting proceedings and it will conduct
hearings in fiscal year 2007 to set rates for the transmission of sound recordings
over the internet.
We have worked closely with the Board to insure a smooth transition from the
old system to the new and we have taken steps to conclude open and pending distribution and rate setting proceedings that were commenced under the Copyright
Arbitration Royalty Panel (CARP) program. The conclusion of these proceedings,
however, does not end my involvement in the determination of statutory rates and
distributions of royalty fees. Under the Reform Act, the Board must seek a legal
opinion from me on any novel question of copyright law and may seek a written determination on other material questions of substantive law. Such determinations
shall be binding as precedent upon the Copyright Royalty Judges in subsequent proceedings.
During fiscal year 2007, we will continue to take an active role in a number of
important copyright cases, many of which challenge the constitutionality of various
provisions of the Copyright Act, and continue to provide ongoing advice to executive
branch agencies on international matters, particularly, the United States Trade

16
Representative, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of State; and
participate in numerous multinational, regional and bilateral negotiations.
Registration and Recordation
Registration of claims to copyright, including renewals, and recordation of documents, such as assignments, security interests, and mergers, are critical parts of the
U.S. copyright system. Timely registration secures to owners certain benefits and
provides a public record of copyright ownership. The Office has significantly improved its delivery times for these services since 2001.
During fiscal year 2005, the Copyright Office received 600,535 claims to copyright
covering more than a million works and registered 531,720 claims. The Office maintained an average of 8090 days to issue a registration certificate, a significant improvement over processing times at the beginning of the decade. We also reduced
the average processing time for the creation and posting of online copyright records
by 50 percent.
The Copyright Office records documents relating to copyrighted works, mask
works, and vessel hull designs and creates records of those documents. These documents frequently concern popular and economically significant works. The Office recorded 11,874 documents covering more than 350,000 titles of works in fiscal year
2005. The average time to record a document was 5060 days.
These achievements took place during a period marked by a significant investment of staff resources to reengineer Copyright Office processes and to move online
copyright records from legacy systems to a database in Endeavor Systems Voyager.
We expect a significant decrease in renewal registrations in 2007, due to the expiration of the renewal provision in the law. Renewal registrations only apply to
works that were copyrighted before January 1, 1978, the effective date of the current copyright law. Before 1978, if a work was published with the required notice
of copyright or an unpublished work was registered in the Copyright Office, it received an initial term of copyright protection of 28 years, and a renewal term that
initially was 28 years and today is 67 years. To receive the renewal term, a renewal
registration had to be made in the last year of the initial term, i.e., the 28th year.
The last date for 28th year renewals was December 31, 2005.
The law was changed in 1992 to make renewal registration voluntary. This law
applies to works copyrighted between January 1, 1964, and December 31, 1977.
There were certain benefits gained by renewing in the 28th year, but if no renewal
claim was registered in the 28th year of the term, renewal was automatically secured on the last day of that year. However, even if renewal is automatically secured, i.e., no renewal application was submitted in the 28th year of the initial term
of copyright, a renewal claim may be submitted after the 28th year and some benefits flow from such a registration. A number of such registrations are made each
year and we expect to receive 2,000 to 3,000 renewals in this category compared to
the 16,000 to 18,000 renewals we have been receiving per year.
The President signed the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act (FECA), Public Law 1099, on April 27, 2005. As mentioned earlier, this legislation amended the
copyright law by the addition of a new provision, 408(f), establishing
preregistration. Preregistration, as distinct from registration, is available only for
unpublished copyrighted works in categories that the Register of Copyrights finds
to have had a history of infringement prior to commercial distribution. Unlike registration, preregistration requires only an application which includes a description
of the work and a fee. Preregistration is an online service only; it is part of the new
information technology system called eCO (Electronic Copyright Office). From April
2005 through the end of the fiscal year, the Office completed intensive work to prepare the electronic preregistration application form and help text, and to do the related IT development, process analysis, and training required to implement on November 15, 2005. Much of the development work that was done for the
preregistration system will be applied directly to the electronic registration system
that will be piloted in April 2006.
Public Information and Education
The Copyright Office responded to 362,263 requests for direct reference services
and electronically published thirty-nine issues of its electronic newsletter
NewsNeta source that alerts over 5,000 subscribers to Congressional hearings,
new and proposed regulations, deadlines for comments, new publications, other
copyright-related subjects, and news about the Copyright Office.
The Office website continued to play a key role in disseminating information to
the copyright community and the general public. The Office logged close to 30 million external hits to key web pages in fiscal year 2005, representing a 49 percent
increase over the previous year. The website received several enhancements, includ-

17
ing introduction of RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds by which members of the
public can receive instant notification of updates and revisions on pages that change
frequently. There is a new history page that includes biographies of former Registers of Copyright, annual reports dating back to 1870, and previous copyright acts.
The website is also part of LCNet, a new gateway for members of Congress and
their staff.
Licensing Activities
The Copyright Office administers certain provisions of the copyright laws statutory licenses. The Licensing Division collects royalty fees from cable operators for
retransmitting television and radio broadcasts, from satellite carriers for retransmitting superstation and network signals, and from importers and manufacturers of
digital audio recording products for later distribution to copyright owners. In calendar year 2005, the Office collected $212.6 million in royalty funds and distributed
$150.7 million to copyright owners.
Reengineering Program
The Copyright Offices seven-year Reengineering Program initiative is to redesign
delivery of its public services. This program is customer driven to prepare our Office
for the future growth in electronic submissions. The Office had planned for the reengineering implementation to be completed in the first half of fiscal year 2007, to
include moving staff offsite so that its space in the Madison Building could be renovated in one phase. However, due to infrastructure and offsite lease requirements,
the program cannot be completed until the third quarter of fiscal year 2007. The
program has four major componentsprocess, information technology, facilities, and
organization that will be fully implemented in fiscal year 2007.
Process
Accomplishments in the process component closely tracked IT development. Pilot
projects began in fiscal year 2005 to test both the new processes and the new IT
system, eCO. In the Registration Pilot, several thousand actual copyright registrations for motion pictures were made using most of the new processesincoming
paper forms were scanned, hard copy deposits were bar-coded and tracked, and all
internal processing and correspondence was done in the eCO system.
Other pilots included the Deposit Selection Pilot, during which examiners successfully made selection decisions for certain routine monographs and musical works for
the Library of Congress. In an Electronic Deposit Pilot, selected publishers submitted electronic versions of works via the internet, in preparation for electronic
registration and possible future deposit of electronic formats for the Librarys collections. As I mentioned earlier, the new preregistration service was implemented in
eCO with an online-only application and completely paperless process. This service
successfully uses Treasurys Pay.Gov for fee payments.
Information Technology (IT)
During fiscal year 2005, the Copyright Technology Office (CTO) continued to work
closely with the system development contractor SRA International, on the analysis,
design, and building of the new Copyright IT systems infrastructure that will support the reengineered business processes. The CTO also made further significant
progress on the conversion of the historical files of copyright registrations and
recordations to MARC format and the preparation for access to the records through
the Voyager system.
To ensure compliance with the Librarys new system security regulation and
newly issued security directives, the Office established a Security Review Board
(SRB), made up of Copyright staff and consultants. During the 10 weeks preceding
the implementation of the Registration Pilot, the SRB created a System Security
Plan defining the security requirements, conducted a risk assessment, carried out
a security compliance test and evaluation, and made recommendations to Copyright
Office management about the security status of the software for this pilot. As a result, the Office received an interim authorization to operate and the system moved
to production.
In fiscal year 2006, the Office plans to expand its implementation of an on-line
web portaleCO Serviceto allow the public to apply for copyright services online
and pay with a credit card or bank account through Pay.Gov. Claims processing
through the web portal will initially be a pilot to allow for full testing of the system
before making it available to all the public in 2007. Additionally, we will use eCO
to search a Voyager database of copyright records dating back to January 1, 1978.
In fiscal year 2007 the Office plans to complete the IT component by transforming
eCO Service from a pilot to full operational capability for processing copyright
claims and issuing registration certificates, processing statements of account for

18
statutory licenses, processing acquisition demands under section 407, and recording
transfers, assignments, and other documents.
Facilities
In November 2004, the Library appointed a project manager funded by the Copyright Office to oversee the Madison Building renovation project and coordinate attendant swing space moves within Capitol Hill and offsite. The Copyright Office
hired a move management company to oversee the moves offsite and back to the
Madison Building. In late September 2005, after an extensive search for temporary
offsite lease space, the Library signed occupancy agreements with Government Services Administration (GSA) for space within two buildings in Crystal City, VA. In December 2005, an RFP was issued for construction of the offsite rental space. A contract was awarded in February 2006 and construction began in late February. Most
of the Offices staff will move offsite in early July 2006. The remaining operations
and staff will be located in the Adams and Madison buildings. We expect all staff
to return to the Madison renovated space in July 2007.
Organization
The Office completed new and revised position descriptions to support the new
processes for most of the divisions in the new organizational structure. Preliminary
work was done to prepare for the cross-walk of staff from current to new positions
and from the current divisions and sub-units to the new ones. The Office began
drafting documents required for the reorganization package as specified in Library
of Congress regulations. In fiscal year 2007, the new organization and positions will
be implemented, coinciding with the return of the staff to the Madison Building and
the implementation of new processes.
FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST

Reengineering
No new funding is needed for reengineering for fiscal year 2007. Rather, the Office is reducing its offsetting collections base by $1,590,911 as a result of fewer
funds remaining in the no-year account.
Renewal Receipts
With respect to renewal registrations, the Office is reducing its offsetting collections authority by $850,000 and five staff due to the fact that the number of renewal
registrations will decrease significantly in fiscal year 2007.
When renewal registration was required, the Office registered approximately
52,000 claims. Since the enactment of the automatic renewal provision in 1992, the
number of renewal claims have decreased each year. In fiscal year 2005, the Office
received approximately 15,893 renewal claims bringing in fees of approximately $1.2
million. In fiscal year 2006, we believe that amount will drop to about $500,000 and
in fiscal year 2007 to about $150,000. Our records show that approximately 5,500
renewal claims were received in October, November, and December 2004. This has
decreased to 4,839 for the same period in 2005 and is expected to decline throughout
the rest of fiscal year 2006.
Overall Fees Increased
Over the past two years, the overall fees collected for the Basic Fund have gradually increased and are projected in fiscal year 2007 to exceed the normal receipts
level of approximately $23 million by $600,000. This is based on more dollars being
received across all the fee products, not from a change in the fee schedule. Based
on this trend, the Office requests a permanent $600,000 increase in offsetting collections authority.
Copyright Records Preservation
The Office requests funding to digitize the pre-1978 copyright records. The key objectives of this record digitization project are (1) disaster preparedness preservation
of pre-1978 public records and (2) provision of online access to those public records.
Copyright records are vital to the mission of the Library of Congress and the Copyright Office and they are important to the public and the copyright industries that
are a significant part of the global economy. The pre-1978 records document the
ownership and copyright status of millions of creative works. Loss of these sole-copy
public records due to a site disaster would trigger a complex and expensive intellectual property ownership dilemma. Additionally, the unavailability of pre-1978
records online has been raised as a major issue in the study on the problem of orphan works.

19
During fiscal year 2005, the Copyright Office, with the Librarys Office of Strategic Initiatives, completed the Copyright Records Project study of the feasibility of
digitizing millions of these paper records and developing technical approaches for
integrating the resulting digital records with post-1977 digital records. The project
team completed testing of vendor capabilities to digitize and index sample records.
A comprehensive report of the project provided implementation strategies, cost estimates, and a recommendation for how the conversion could be handled in two
stages.
The first stage would cost approximately $6,000,000 over a six year period and
would achieve the preservation goal and very basic online access. The second stage
would add item level indexing, enhanced searching and retrieval, costing between
$5,000,000 and $65,000,000 depending on the extent of fields indexed. The Copyright Office is requesting for fiscal year 2007 the initial $1 million to begin the first
stage.
FUTURE FEE INCREASE

On November 13, 1997, Congress enacted the Technical Amendments Act, some
provisions of which are now codified in 17 U.S.C. 708. The law requires the Register of Copyrights, whenever appropriate, to conduct a study of costs incurred by
the Office for the registration of claims, the recordation of documents and other special services. On the basis of the study and public policy considerations and subject
to congressional review, the Register is authorized to increase statutory and related
fees to recover reasonable costs adjusted for inflation. Furthermore, the new fees
should be fair and equitable and give due consideration to the objectives of the copyright system.
The last time the Copyright Office raised fees was July 2002. The basic filing fee
was set in 1999 and has not increased since that time. Historically, a change in the
charge for services usually causes a drop in customer demand in the fiscal year following the increase and then a gradual rise in demand over the next two years. The
possibility for raising fees was considered in 20012002. Because the Office had just
begun its reengineering project to implement electronic registrations, and that
project was to have been completed in 2006, the fee increase was postponed to coincide with the implementation of the new electronic system. However, since the implementation date for the new system is now summer 2007, we believe that we
should move forward with a change to fees now.
I have received fee recommendations based on a cost study developed by a task
group. We will complete the required economic analysis and propose a schedule of
fees to Congress in March 2006 to be effective July 1, 2006. The Office will publish
a notice in the Federal Register to announce a proposed fee schedule. Based on a
years experience under the revised fee schedule and the new business processes, the
Office expects to adjust the mix of net appropriation and offsetting collections authority in its fiscal year 2008 BASIC budget submission to Congress.
CONCLUSION

Mr. Chairman, I ask you to support the fiscal year 2007 Copyright Basic budget
request for a permanent net decrease in offsetting collections for the BASIC appropriation and a one time $1 million increase in net appropriations for the Digital Imaging project.
Our fiscal year 2007 budget will allow us to implement the final steps of our Reengineering Program. Once implemented, the Office plans to further reduce both its
net appropriations and offsetting collections authority in the fiscal year 2008 budget
request as well as adjust the net appropriations and offsetting collections based on
the implementation of new fees. We appreciate your continued support for the Reengineering Project that will transform the way we do business and meet the
publics demand for electronic services.
I thank the Committee for its past support of the Copyright Office requests and
for your consideration of this request in this challenging time of transition and
progress.
LOGISTICS CENTER COST

Senator ALLARD. Thank you very much. I have a few questions.

It should not take us too long this morning to get you on your way.
On the logistics warehouse, I am glad to see that you recognize
that this is a pretty big chunk that we are looking at. The total
overhead is about 18 percent. You have 10 percent that is being as-

20
sessed by the Architect and you have 8 percent by the Corps of Engineers. It sounds excessive. I wonder if, with two supervising
agencies, we have a duplication of effort. I wonder if you could comment on that.
Dr. BILLINGTON. Well, I think I would defer to General Scott on
this issue, except to say that the basic construction cost, the $41
million, is about what was approved for the last two book modules
approved last year, and there is this question of construction oversight fees, as you indicate.
I would just say briefly that the importance of this can hardly
be overestimated. It is essential to effect this kind of consolidation
for the Librarys entire distribution function. It is not just a warehouse; it is a logistics center that will more efficiently do what is
being done less efficiently at four separate locations at higher costs,
to be precise.
LOGISTICS CENTER REVIEW

We plan to discuss on a line by line basis in a very careful way

all estimated costs with the Architect of the Capitol. But I will
defer to General Scott, who has been more deeply involved in the
planning.
General SCOTT. Thank you, Dr. Billington. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
The Library is very concerned about the oversight costs and contingency reserves. These are costs as you correctly point out, by the
AOC and the Corps of Engineers, which we have no control or influence over. However, we have and will continue to engage them
to ask them to help us look for ways that we can reduce those costs
and still receive the kind of expert construction oversight that is
required to put up that facility.
We also, as Dr. Billington mentioned, will go through a line by
line study to ensure that any type of savings that we can propose
will be realized and we can reduce the price.
One of the other additional costs related to that facility came
about as a result of concern from some of the citizens of that area
who wanted there to be more of a look to blend with the neighborhood of the Fort Meade facilities. That has added more money than
would otherwise be needed.
So we will revisit all these estimated costs, but in the end we are
very much concerned about them. We are engaged with the AOC
and we will appreciate anything the subcommittee can do to help
us work with the AOC to reduce these costs.
GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE AND RESULTS ACT (GPRA)

Senator ALLARD. I am going to have my staff talk with the Corps

of Engineers as well as the Architect of the Capitol on these administrative costs and express to them my concerns about how high
they are.
Now, we do not have the Architect of the Capitol under what is
referred to as the performance assessment and review tool (PART)
program. This is the method that the Office of Management and
Budget uses to measure performance within the agencies of the
Federal Government. The legislative agencies are not required to

21
be under this. Executive branch agencies are required to justify actions and assess results that we can measure here in Congress.
And if they do not measure very well, it impacts how favorably
their budget is considered. If they are rated as, for example, ineffective or results not demonstrated, their budget would be cut.
FEDERAL AGENCY OVERHEAD

So, you are the customer of the Army Corps of Engineers, and
we will have our staff talk to them. When we have these overhead
costs, we need to be sure they can justify them, that they are measurable from a customer satisfaction standpoint. Frankly, I want to
see more of our legislative agencies under that program because as
legislators and policymakers it gives us the ability to measure performance of the various agencies.
And while we are on the subject, we would encourage the Library
of Congress to also look at this kind of accountability when you report to the subcommittee, because it is valuable for policymakers
and it does help us do a better job for the taxpayers of this country.
This particular article, just for your information, we got this out
of Congressional Quarterly, page 538 and 539, so you can look at
the program if you are not familiar with it. This is an opportunity
for us to have more accountability and oversight of these agencies.
I think they are way too high, these administrative costs.
GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE AND RESULTS ACT AND LIBRARY
PLANNING

General SCOTT. We certainly appreciate your assistance in this,

Mr. Chairman. Yes, we too appreciate the value of GPRA standards
because we have been implementing GPRA since 1997. To a certain
degree, the cost savings that we have been able to show with this
2007 budget came as a result of follow-on to GPRA and coming up
with an annual activity and performance plan. From that plan we
create the operating plan that we give to the Congress. So we appreciate GPRA, and we certainly appreciate what you might do to
help us.
Senator ALLARD. The nice thing about it is you are not necessarily just counting beans. What you do hope to put in place are
some goals and objectives that are measurable from a consumer
standpoint: Who is using that agency? Who is using their services?
And how are those customers needs being met? So I think it helps
us all do a better job in that. We have to measure results.
COPYRIGHT DEPOSITS FACILITY

Also, one other question now. You have requested money for this
logistics warehouse. In the 2005 budget, we had a copyright deposits facility project. Would you explain to me why we now have the
logistics warehouse that seems to have a higher priority than the
copyright facility when the copyright facility was requested back in
the 2005 budget?
Dr. BILLINGTON. Well, the copyright deposits facility is extremely
important. It is very difficult to make choices of this kind, but the
logistics center need is a more immediate one. We are moving
ahead thanks to the Congress approval in 2003 and 2004. This is

22
a year of important transition for the Copyright Office. Fiscal year
2007 is the last year of the reengineering project. The staff must
relocate for 1 year while their facilities are reconfigured. The logistics issues affect distribution and storage, and the related safety
and security problems seem to us essential this year. The copyright
facility, which I think the Library will have to come back for next
year, is equally important, but perhaps a little bit more deferrable
because of the redesign that is taking place to facilitate a modular
construction approach. It will be an essential request next year. It
is not a lesser priority; it is just a different priority and one that
fits next year with the overall schedule because of the redesigned
modular approach.
Senator ALLARD. Well, thank you.
Dr. BILLINGTON. General Scott wanted to add to that.
General SCOTT. I believe, Mr. Chairman, we were asked to take
another look at the redesign of that copyright deposits facility,
which we did. Then we only switched priorities temporarily while
coming up with the redesign, making a determination that it would
be more advantageous for the Library to go ahead with the logistics
center at this time rather than with the copyright facility this year.
INTRODUCTION OF INSPECTOR GENERAL

Senator ALLARD. I am one legislator who utilizes the agencies

that are sort of the eyes and ears of the Congress. GAO is one. Another one is the Inspector General. I know that the Inspector General has expressed some concerns about the cost on this and I understand that Mr. Schornagel is here with us today. I would like
to have him come up if you would, please, and make any comments
that you care to make about this proposal.
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. My name is Karl Schornagel, Inspector General.
LOGISTICS CENTER REVIEW

As you have already stated, I have concerns about the cost of this
warehouse. I just learned of the total price a couple weeks ago and
I expressed concerns immediately. I also raised in March 2005
some concern about the size of this warehouse. I am in the process
of getting information from the Library as we speak, and there is
an important report that is going to be issued by one of the Librarys contractors that should shed some light on this issue.
Senator ALLARD. When is that supposed to come out?
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. Next week.
Senator ALLARD. Next week, okay.
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. I also share the Librarians concern that the
whole cadre of storage facilities at Fort Meade is behind schedule
about 5 or 6 years. There certainly is a need to get some of these
buildings put up.
Senator ALLARD. So would you be more specific about some of
your concerns about cost overruns?
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. Yes. I am concerned that about $15 million of
that $54 million in cost is oversight and contingency. I am especially concerned about multiple layers of oversight. About $7 million of that is for AOC oversight and administration, more than $3

23
million for the Corps of Engineers. There is $6 million in reserves
and contingency, plus another 25 percent in price escalation.
I also have issues about some of the individual cost components
of the warehouse itself that range anywhere from microwave ovens
to the sod for the front lawn. I believe that the whole cost issue
and approach needs to be reviewed more thoroughly.
Senator ALLARD. I hope that while you review this project, his
suggestions will be helpful in trying to figure out ways in which we
could bring down the cost of this.
In the past you have raised concerns about poor space management at Library facilities, including the warehouse at Landover
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. Yes, that is true.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. That the new facility would replace. Have these concerns been resolved?
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. Well, not fully. That is what I mentioned earlier. In March 2005 I issued an audit report that found inefficient
use of the space. As a result, about 20 percent of the inventory
items were deleted. These are items that were either excess or obsolete. As part of that audit report, I recommended that the size
of the new warehouse be reconsidered in light of this new efficiency
gain and, to my satisfaction that has not fully been addressed yet.
Senator ALLARD. So we have excess capacity that is being poorly
managed in the Landover facility?
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. Yes, that is true.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. SCHORNAGEL. And I have other issues. For example, the reference to the new warehouse is in terms of square feet, but when
you consider that the proposed warehouse is going to be taller, it
actually increases the capacity per square foot because you have to
look at cubic feet. Issues like that are relevant to the plans for this
new warehouse.
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE REALIGNMENT

Senator ALLARD. Thank you for that insight.

On the CRS realignment, the CRS determined last year that
some 59 production support, technology support, and audio-visual
positions were no longer needed and the affected employees were
offered a buyout in January. Those who did not take the buyout
could be subject to a reduction in force later this year.
Can you describe the process that CRS went through to make
that determination that the positions were not needed, Dr.
Billington?
Dr. BILLINGTON. Well, I will defer to the Director of the Congressional Research Service to respond in detail. I will point out that
this is part of the workforce transformation process. The needs of
the Service to deliver, and particularly to integrate the electronic
aspects of the Service have been increasing greatly. We need to reconfigure the workforce to deal simultaneously with both the digital component of information delivery, including the successful
mining of the vast amount of public policy research, as we continue
our traditional artifactual work.

24
So the Library is undergoing very important transformational
changes currently. I will let the Director of the Service speak more
directly to the particulars.
TECHNOLOGY AND STAFFING

Senator ALLARD. Dan Mulhollan, would you like to come up?

While he is coming up, Dr. Billington, I have to tell you I am
very sympathetic with your challenges in moving to a high tech operation. Those are huge challenges and they create some obstacles
as far as managing your workforce. These are challenges we both
have to face.
Dr. BILLINGTON. Servicing the Congress is our first priority. We
are the Library of Congress, and making sure that that conversion
moves ahead so the Service can be as effective, timely, dependable
and objective as it has always been is a very high priority.
Senator ALLARD. Well, the high technology requires a higher
level of expertise and it is more efficient in many ways. The user
of the Library can more quickly search out the information through
computer search.
Dr. BILLINGTON. It used to be in the early days of the information revolution that the IT part of an institution was where the expertise would be concentrated. It now has to be developed thoroughly and integrated into the direct service components much
more seamlessly and much more immediately. I will let the Director speak to the details.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE
DIRECTOR

Senator ALLARD. Mr. Mulhollan.

Mr. MULHOLLAN. Good morning Senator. We welcome the opportunity to discuss this issue. I appreciate it.
As a matter of good business practices, CRS reviews its activities
and positions continually and has for years. What we identified is,
particularly in the functions of production support and audio-visual
functions, that the positions we had established in the early 1990s,
which corresponded to the technical functions at that time, were no
longer relevant to the technical skills needed with a more sophisticated, centralized IT operating system. For instance, production
support activities are now seamlessly integrated into network software. Numerous technical support positions had been created to install new hardware as well as software packages and upgrades machine by machine. Now, with push technology and a fully integrated network system, those functions no longer are needed.
We also found an underuse of the Services audio-visual functions, as well as the changes in technology.
Our responsibility is to maintain analytical and research capacity
and these decisions were based on our ensuring we could do that.
Given the fact that we had a certain amount of money available,
workforce reengineering seemed necessary.
We had announced to staff on September 22, 2005 that we were
going to eliminate 59 support positions effective September 30,
2006. To my knowledge, there is not another agency that has given
their staff 1 year in order to find other jobs. In addition, with your
help from last year, we offered separation incentives as well as get-

25
ting early out authority from the Office of Personnel Management
in order to provide more options to staff.
Twenty-three of the 59 took full or early retirement with the separation incentive. We have distributed to all staff in CRS the entire
staffing plan for the remainder of the fiscal year. As of this point,
three of the administrative positions were filled with affected staff,
two staff accepted positions elsewhere in the Library. Five of the
affected staff in those abolished positions have been placed. I anticipate there is some likelihood that some of the remaining affected staff are certainly competitive and may be selected for other
jobs. Currently there are 31 affected staff remaining who will be
without a job at the end of September.
According to our collective bargaining agreement and Library
regs, if in fact those folks are not in another position by June, the
Library of Congress will institute a reduction in force. My fondest
hope is that prior to that time, every one of those people could find
a job that they find meaningful and good.
PREPARED STATEMENT

Now, that said, one of the things that the Library is seeking your
help for is approval of an administrative provision that would provide a safety net basically for reduction in force staff of the Library
of Congress. The new provisions would allow a staff member of the
Library who is facing a reduction in force to be in the executive
branchs priority placement pool, if they want to continue their civil
service. We would much appreciate your serious consideration of
that provision.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

DANIEL P. MULHOLLAN

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to
appear before you today to present the fiscal year 2007 budget request for the Congressional Research Service (CRS). With regard to our fiscal year 2006 request, I
would like to express my gratitude for the Committees support. Despite the challenging fiscal environment, Congress found a way to provide some additional assistance in meeting the Services mandatory pay and price-level adjustments, research
materials, and staffing gap.
FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST

The CRS fiscal year 2007 budget request is $104,279,000, consisting of the fiscal
year 2006 base plus an adjustment for mandatory pay increases for CRS staff, as
well as the needed price level adjustment for the goods and services we acquire in
the course of doing our work.
RESEARCH AGENDA

This past year Congress has functioned under enormous pressures. In addition to
existing domestic and international issues, lawmakers faced many unanticipated
policy concerns that drew on already strained resources, such as hurricane-related
disasters, Supreme Court nominations, and control of mandatory spending through
the budget-reconciliation process. Pressing issues such as these have required your
full attention, and the Service has been at your side during these demanding times,
providing expert research and analysis, grounded in institutional memory, tailored
to specific needs, and made immediately available.
The character of the support we offered to the Congress this past year reflects
the continuing and unbroken history of CRS singular mission. We remain steadfast
in supplying every committee and Member with analysis and evaluation of legislative proposals by identifying all components of the policy issues, estimating the
probable results, and evaluating alternative options.

26
CRS has a research management framework that is structured to align with the
policymaking needs of the Congress. Service-wide research planning makes possible
a systematic and coordinated approach that affords important opportunities for
interdisciplinary collaboration among experts across the Service. At the beginning
of each congressional session, the Services leadership and experts work alongside
committees and Members, anticipating and identifying the major domestic and
international policy issues to produce a research agenda. We continually reassess
that agenda to address unanticipated circumstances. CRS ability to respond to unexpected need for its services, while maintaining support for continuing domestic
and international issues, highlights the depth and breadth of its services.
Before Hurricane Katrina even made landfall, we had compiled a list of CRS experts and identified the Services relevant products, making them immediately
available on our website. We contacted Members in the affected states and alerted
them to available CRS support and services. We then assembled teams from relevant disciplines and policy areas to address Congress concerns about hurricane victims access to assistance; command and control in emergency management; federal
financing of unprecedented, extended assistance in the form of food, shelter, health
services, and general income support; challenges to rebuilding; and reestablishment
of the social and economic stability of the region. CRS experts assessed pre- and
post-hurricane conditions relevant to policy concerns, critiqued the focus and effectiveness of existing laws and programs, and evaluated policy proposals to bring relief to the area. Through briefings and consultations, in more than one hundred research products, and via specially designed sections of the CRS website, the Service
provided the Congress with support during this major national disaster, which Congress addressed in more than one hundred hearings.
Other unanticipated legislative issues required slightly different approaches. For
example, the Senate was called on for the first time in eleven years to carry out
its advice and consent responsibilities in the Supreme Court confirmation process.
However, more than one-half of the Senators and many congressional staff holding
key positions in the process had no direct experience with such appointments. To
support them, CRS provided legal expertise, research and analysis, and the insight
resulting from institutional memory, acquired though several decades of support for
Supreme Court and other judicial nominations. Through in-person briefings, reports,
seminars and confidential memoranda, CRS informed Congress about committee
and floor rules and procedures, the constitutionality of filibusters in relation to judicial nominations, status and prospects for the evolution of areas of law, and a history of congressional experiences with previous Supreme Court nominations. Additionally, aided by the digital scanning operations and the unique collections of the
Library of Congress, CRS provided searchable online access to congressional documentation, including hearings, floor debates, floor statements, and votes, for eighteen successful and unsuccessful Supreme Court nominations. Most of this documentation, nearly 100,000 pages, had not previously been available digitally.
In April 2005, Congress adopted a budget resolution for fiscal year 2006 that included instructions to sixteen House and Senate authorizing committees. The instructions called for reductions in mandatory outlays over several years and for tax
reductions and increased limit on public debt. To assist these committees and the
Congress as a whole, CRS prepared explanations of budget process, procedures, and
practices, some of which Congress had not exercised for eight years. Thirty-eight
percent of the House Members and one-third of the Senate were not in their current
roles in 1997, which was the last time Congress employed reconciliation to control
spending. CRS briefed many Members and committees on these procedures. CRS
also assisted in assessing the overall financial and policy implications of budget reconciliation measures, ranging from the specific options and their implications for
trimming mandatory spending to the possible impacts on various programs subject
to proposed changes.
MANAGEMENT INITIATIVES

CRS adapts in other areas to uphold our commitment to Congress. Consistent

with my responsibility to lead an accountable and cost-effective organization and in
response to congressional directives, CRS not only re-assesses its direct services to
the Congress, it also continually examines the internal operations supporting that
service. As Congress has indicated, new technologies can lead to greater efficiency,
and CRS has completed a long-term study of the impact of information technology
on our work processes. The resulting analysis indicated that CRS, through workforce re-engineering of some support functions, could reduce the number of support
staff needed Service-wide and devote more of the resources to the our analytic capacity without any loss in productivity.

27
In 2005 CRS completed an examination of our production support, technical support, and audio-visual functions, those support functions most dramatically impacted by technological advancements. After extensive consultation we reached the
decision to eliminate the outdated functions. The decision affected 59 staff, which
is about 8.4 percent of the total CRS workforce. To assist these individuals, many
of whom are long-term CRS employees, the Service announced the decision one year
in advance, offered a voluntary early retirement option and a congressionally approved separation incentive, and provided continuing retirement and career counseling to the affected staff. This type of workforce self-examination is not new to
CRS. As a result of similar assessments, CRS has eliminated or curtailed other
functional activities over the years. Earlier situations also required CRS to eliminate positions, but in the past CRS was able to achieve the down-sizing through attrition. Given the fiscal year 2006 constraints, which require CRS to reduce its staff
size by almost 30 full-time equivalents, it is not practical for CRS to retain indefinitely these employees, whose functions are not critical to the accomplishment of the
Services mission. It is our hope that the affected staff will either retire or find alternative employment before the functions are eliminated on September 30, 2006. If
that does not occur, we will institute a reduction-in-force (RIF) in accordance with
governing Library regulations and our collective bargaining agreement.
The Library of Congress is requesting the Committee consider an administrative
provision that would grant Library of Congress employees, including those in CRS,
who receive a RIF notice eligibility into a pool for displaced employees from all federal agencies for consideration for positions in executive branch agencies. This provision would place Library of Congress employees behind any affected employees in
an agency undergoing a RIF in selection priority but ahead of applicants who have
no federal service. Adopting this provision would give the Librarys small pool of
dedicated legislative branch public servants a broader potential employment base
and could give employees the opportunity to enhance their civil-service careers beyond the Library of Congress.
Building on our current performance management system, and in response to
Congress request that legislative branch agencies consider the performance model
set forth in the Government Performance and Results Act, CRS developed an enhanced system for assessing performance and reporting results to the Congress. The
plan and reporting system, which are built around our singularly focused mission,
use the key attributes of relevance, quality, accessibility, and management initiatives as concrete frames of reference for establishing performance goals. The plan
groups performance goals into two distinct sets: one focused on research and the
other on management. The management goals are essential to sustaining and improving agency efficiency in resource usage.
Congress has stated that it expects the legislative branch agencies to find opportunities to realize savings through outsourcing certain activities and functions. The
Service has permanently outsourced several business functions that are now being
performed successfully by contractors. These business functions include a centralized copy center, the CRS technology Help Desk, technology user-support services,
mail and courier services, and receptionist and library technician positions. We have
just awarded a new contract for the mail and courier services, which includes a revamped performance structure that resulted in the reduction of one contractor staff
position and two mail clerk positions. We are currently expanding our technology
Help Desk contract operation to provide extended hours of coverage to CRS staff,
higher quality services, and a more sophisticated range of services. The Service is
also expanding its contract support for graphics and product preparation. We are
continually reviewing all of these operations to ensure the Services business needs
are being met in a manner that provides the best value and efficacy possible.
In the same spirit of achieving savings to focus our resources on supplying Congress with needed research and analysis, we are curtailing non-mission-critical activities, except as explicitly directed by the Congress. The Service has been working
with its oversight committees to explore alternative approaches to translation services and to the indexing of congressional publications produced by CRS. In response
to requests for translations, the Service is seeking to provide referral to outside
service providers that have been certified by CRS as providing reliable and timely
responses. Like translation services, the indexing function is largely outside the mission of the Service, and we are consulting with our oversight committees and the
Joint Committee on Printing to work out a mutually acceptable arrangement with
the Government Printing Office to assist the Congress with such services.
However, CRS remains responsive to all congressional needs, even non-mission
critical ones, when Congress specifically directs us. For example, Congress requested
CRS provide assistance to the House Democracy Assistance Commission and the
House International Relations Committee on parliamentary development programs

28
in new democracies. CRS country experts are assisting the Commission in its selection of candidate countries. Our country and parliamentary assistance experts have
been detailed to the House International Relations Committee to travel with Commission staff for needs assessment visits to candidate countries. The Service has
also been asked to provide assistance to the Georgian, Indonesian, and other parliaments in developing their research services. Further requests for CRS assistance
are likely to depend on the findings from future needs assessment visits. All travel
is funded through the House Committee, but we continue to pay staff salaries. CRS
leadership is carefully assessing this support to ensure that the capabilities of our
staff remain available to meet other congressional demands.
CONCLUSION

CRS is responding directly to congressional instruction to submit reasonable budget requests and consider the overall fiscal constraints placed on the entire federal
budget, to streamline by outsourcing, to leverage existing technology to enhance
operational efficiency, and to look within for ways to complete our mission. The
Service is responding to a federal fiscal environment that dictates the size of this
organization be about 705 full-time equivalents. Cognizant of current fiscal realities
and heeding congressional direction, the CRS budget request for fiscal year 2007
does not seek additional funds to support program growth. The Service seeks your
support for the mandatory pay increases for CRS staff and price-level adjustments
for goods and services.
CRS intends to complete the re-engineering of its administrative and support staff
and will assess the actual impact of these actions, from both fiscal and functional
perspectives, against the expected results. The Service will likely study other business functions to see if additional streamlining can be achieved and intends to continue its practice of reviewing all major contracts and business operations bi-annually to ensure that the Services fiscal resources are being used in the most costeffective and relevant manner possible. The results of these studies and re-engineering efforts are expected to provide meaningful business information that will guide
the Services decision-making and frame future management initiatives.
While the Service has remained steadfast to its mission and devoted to providing
quality services to the Congress, CRS cannot afford to be static. An organization
serving the Congress that is unable to change quickly, alter itself to increase efficiency, or adapt to new requirements is an organization bound to fail. CRS is mindful of this reality and has continually sought out and acted on pragmatic approaches
that lead to improvements to better fulfill its mission.
Despite the many changes in Congress and within CRS, the Service of today is
identical to the Service of 1914 in one way: our dedication to our mission to provide
balanced, nonpartisan, authoritative expertise to the Congress, on time, on target
and in forms useful to lawmakers. We will never change the course of our direction.
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE REALIGNMENT SAVINGS

Senator ALLARD. So there is approximately $4.4 million in savings, and how is that reflected in the Librarys 2007 budget request?
Mr. MULHOLLAN. You mean the 59 affected staff? Well, to give
you an example
Senator ALLARD. The savings from that, yes.
Mr. MULHOLLAN. Yes, but part of that savings, I think it cost
roughly $600,000 to be able to provide a $25,000 separation incentive to each person. We used the balance of those salaries for the
remainder of that fiscal year to provide the separation incentives,
as an example. Because we had an overall $3.6 millionexcuse
me$3.1 million shortfall, if you recall, last fiscal year and the
committee gave us $1 million of our $3.1 million request to keep
us at 729 FTEs. So we have requested a permanent reduction to
705, because we do not have enough money in our base in order
to sustain the service at the 729.
As a consequence of this, you recall I mentioned that we were focusing our resources to maintain our analytical capacity. We are
going to end up with a smaller workforce configurationmaintain-

29
ing the number of analysts needed to do the research and analytic
work for the Congress, but fewer overall support staff.
CONSULTATION WITH CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE STAFF

Senator ALLARD. In your testimony you state that extensive consultation took place before you decided to eliminate production support, computer technical support, and audio-visual functions. With
whom did you consult?
Mr. MULHOLLAN. The individual who did the studies spoke to
every one of the affected staff in the examination of their positions.
Senator ALLARD. So the CRS staff was consulted?
Mr. MULHOLLAN. They were interviewed with regard to what
they were actually doing and what the functions described in their
position descriptions were.
Senator ALLARD. This was done before you made your decision,
I assume?
Mr. MULHOLLAN. That is correct. They all were able to say, this
is what I do.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now, there are 31, as you mentioned,
that still have not landed, so to speak, and could be subject to that
reduction in force. What action specifically are you taking to work
with the rest of the Library to find positions for those 31 staff?
OPTIONS FOR DISPLACED EMPLOYEES

Mr. MULHOLLAN. Well, first we are continuing to provide career

counseling and career transition supporthow to write a resume,
classes on how to apply for a job in the civil service. That is ongoing and available to each one of those 31 affected staff.
In addition, we are working closely with the Library of Congress
and the head of the Librarys human resources services. The Library has a great track record, from prior reduction-in-force events,
of being able to find positions for those individuals. There is a commitment across the senior management of the Library, for which
I am quite grateful, to do whatever possible to try to ensure that
in fact there may be positions. While there are no guarantees, we
are going to do everything possible to place any remaining staff.
That is why that approval of our proposed administrative provisions would be helpful for us in the future.
RETIREMENT INCENTIVES

Senator ALLARD. This is for Dr. Billington. In January about 186

employees took advantage of an early retirement and buyout incentive offered Library-wide, including the CRS staff we were talking
about. Can you explain why the buyout was offered, what job functions were eliminated, and how much funding was freed as a result
of the buyout, and how you are redirecting those funds?
Dr. BILLINGTON. I did not understand the last two points you
made.
Senator ALLARD. Well, lets see. Explain why the buyout was offered and then what job functions were eliminated, and then how
much funding was freed up as a result of the buyout. Why do we
not just take them one at a time. Why did you offer the buyout?

30
Dr. BILLINGTON. Well, I think we will provide, with your agreement, the statistics for the record. I can answer the question in
general and then we will give you the detailed statistics.
WORKFORCE TRANSFORMATION

First of all, we have a very large number of people who are eligible to retire. It is an aging workforce. This is the beginning of a
general workforce transformation process and we wanted to give a
significant buyout opportunity, which quite a number of people
took.
On the day our employees were leaving, I met with many of
them, and they said they appreciated the buyout.
It is part of the workforce transformation we are undergoing into
the digital era. The buyout was a way of offering an opportunity
to leave, which a great many people took.
I might point out that in the current budget submission the
$781,000 is to assist the workforce transformation. We want to develop some newly defined digital competencies. We want to build
leadership skills for people from the GS5 to GS9 category. We
want to do everything we can to retrain as many staff members as
possible and expand the range of opportunities.
This is a direction in which we are trying to move as rapidly as
we can. We have to also recruit new people from the outside, but
we really genuinely want to give as much opportunity for other jobs
in the Library. The Library as a whole is facing a need to transform itself and there cannot be any guarantees, but I want to assure you that the Library as a whole will make every effort to
make available alternate opportunities for people whose present
functions are becoming obsolete. We have brought on as the head
of training somebody who has had experience with one of the more
successful programs in the Federal Government and we have been
beefing up that staff.
We are very concerned about this problem in human terms, but
at the same time we simply have to move ahead with this kind of
transformation if the Library is going to continue to serve the Congress and the Nation properly.
We will provide you statistics and details for the record.
[The information follows:]
During fiscal year 2006, the Library requested approval from Congress to offer
separation incentives and from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to offer
early retirements. Consistent with the legislation governing these incentives and
early retirements, the Library indicated that it needed to reshape and renew its
workforce to match the highly-specialized skill sets that are replacing outmoded
ways of filling its mission. Both Congress and OPM approved these requests. It
should be noted that the Chief Human Capital Officers Act of 2002 (title 13 of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002, Public Law 107296), contained an explicit sense
of Congress that the legislations intent was to reshape and not downsize the Federal workforce. Since, 2002, executive branch agencies have used these authorities
to meet the changing needs of the 21st century. In fiscal year 2005, Congress granted the legislative branch authority comparable to that of the executive branch. Thus
the Librarys implementation plan is consistent with the purpose of the Act; to reshapenot downsize its workforce.
The Librarys fiscal year 2006 separation incentive programs addressed specific,
critical workforce requirements in the Congressional Research Service (CRS), Library Services (LS), and Integrated Support Services (ISS). In the case of CRS, advances in technology, its deployment in the Service, and the technical skill level of
incoming analytical staff rendered obsolete the services provided by its production

31
support staff, technical support assistants, and audio-visual staff. In addition, CRS
required information professionals who could meet the redefined work, competencies, and skills sets of the Knowledge Services Group, created to better use the
skills of librarians and other information professionals to serve the needs of Congress. Library Services needed to re-engineer its functions, redesign jobs, retrain
current staff, and recruit new staff to meet the Librarys digital requirements. For
example, in the acquisitions and cataloging areas, staff will be required to manage
digital assets that have distinctive retrieval and preservation requirementsmore
complicated than the traditional handling of printed books and journals. With more
than 3 billion hits on the Web site annually, questions once asked in person are
now coming from individuals we will never see in person. As a result, reference assistance and more collection curation must be performed online, changing the profile
of and skills needed from a reference staff. Technological changes have also required
new skill sets on the part of ISS staff. For example, printing is now created with
sophisticated computerized tools and electronically transmitted with customer-driven requirements that generate high-impact graphics and images unimagined only
a few years ago. Similarly, facility operations staff must have technical expertise to
monitor buildings adequately and effectively with the sophisticated and integrated
systems required by todays high technology workforce.
Approximately $16 million supported the salaries and benefits of the 186 employees participating in the early out and buyout programs. Redirection of this funding
will enable the Library to hire new staff more quickly rather than waiting for current staff to retire at some unknown point in the future, increase contract support
capacityin areas where flexibility in staff support is needed as business plans
evolve and are implemented, and invest in new equipment needed to support our
innovative programs. This funding, combined with the $781,000 requested for workforce transformation, will ensure that the Library has the toolsthat include not
only separation incentives and early retirements, but also staff training, mentoring,
career planning and counseling and digital competency skills development, needed
to implement an integrated workforce renewal plan. The success of this plan is highly dependent on the resources available to carry out each part of the plan. If funding
and FTEs are stripped away, the Library will be in a worse position than had we
waited for employees to retirea time line that was already impeding the Librarys
digital transition and transformation.
IMPACT OF RETIREMENTS

Senator ALLARD. The detail of these questions that we are asking

is to provide us a thorough and complete answer. So the rest of the
question on what job functions were eliminated and how much
funding was freed up as a result of the buyout and how you are
redirecting those funds, we would like to have a detailed answer
on that. If you do not have that information in front of you now,
we will give you a chance to give us a written response.
Dr. BILLINGTON. Yes, sir.
Did you want to add anything?
General SCOTT. No, I think that is the most appropriate way to
handle it.
Senator ALLARD. Is that fine, General Scott?
General SCOTT. Yes, sir.
COPYRIGHT REENGINEERING PROGRAM

Senator ALLARD. Let me move on to the copyright reengineering.

Now, that office has been engaged in a 6-year effort to overhaul its
work processes, a project which involves major space renovation.
The subcommittee provided over $9 million in the fiscal year 2006
budget for temporary office space and renovation of the existing
space in the Madison Building. The effort now is 6 months behind,
I am told.
Why has it been delayed and what is the impact on cost and is
the project now on track for completion in 2007?

32
Dr. BILLINGTON. It is on track now. The delay was caused because of the difficulty the General Services Administration (GSA)
had in finding a place that could house the Copyright Office for
only 1 year instead of the conventional longer term lease, while the
final stages of the reengineering were taking place. There were
three different changes of locations resulting in changes to design
specifications and so forth. There was a delay, but it is on track
now and we are expecting that in July of this year, they will move
out to another location in Crystal City and in July of the following
year, they will be back in their full reengineered mode.
Meanwhile, the pilots and electronic registration are on track, if
you want details, we have Julia Huffthe Register is unfortunately not available to be here today, but Julia Huff from the Copyright Office can answer this.
REENGINEERING PROJECT DELAYS

Senator ALLARD. In your efforts in working with the Architect of

the Capitol and GSA, what could prevent the type of problems you
have encountered in future projects of this kind?
Dr. BILLINGTON. Well, General Scott, do you want to address
that?
General SCOTT. I have got some general ideas, but I think it
would be best if we could hear from Julia, who has really been intimately involved in trying to re-schedule and keep things on track
that mostly were way beyond the Librarys control. Is Julia here?
Ms. HUFF. Yes.
Senator ALLARD. Julia, do you want to give the lessons learned?
Ms. HUFF. Yes, Mr. Chairman, I will. One thing that might have
helpedwe started working with GSA in early 2004, and we probably would have benefited from having our own project manager
onboard at that time, and we did not add that project manager
until 2005. He, along with the facilities team, has really kept on
top of GSA and tried to move them along.
The lesson we have learned from GSA is that they have a very
structured, layered organization and it just takes more time than
we anticipated to get paperwork approvals, negotiations, and the
like moved through all required steps.
Senator ALLARD. In short, they are bureaucratic?
Ms. HUFF. Yes, you might say that.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Ms. HUFF. They did not really respond immediately to our request for leased space. When they did, the space was too small, and
then they switched buildings on us twice in Crystal City. All of this
caused delays in the design. We had to do redesigns of the architectural work, for electrical work, for voice and data. We incurred
more costs and delays because of these changes.
So yes, we are behind and it is because of the facilities piece. We
might have started in 2003, but 2 years seemed like plenty of lead
time when we first began.
NATIONAL AUDIO-VISUAL CONSERVATION CENTERCULPEPER STATUS

Senator ALLARD. Very good.

On the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center. The Library
will be taking possession of this new National Audio-Visual Con-

33
servation Center in early 2007. I really appreciate the opportunity
to go out and tour that center, and I think we are all very appreciative of the Packard Foundation and all they have done as far as
providing citizens of this country a very good facility.
I would just like to have an update on what the status is of this
privately funded construction project, and then once it is operational do we have any idea what the annual operations and maintenance costs might be for that? I want to make sure we are making allowances for that in future budgets.
Dr. BILLINGTON. We can try to give you a precise estimate.
[The information follows:]
The Librarys five-year request to Congress to acquire the new equipment and
staff resources necessary to operate the NAVCC concludes in fiscal year 2008. Full
initial operations will begin in fiscal year 2009, and ongoing annual costs beginning
that year will be approximately $23.4 million for the Library. This estimate does
not include the AOCs operating and maintenance costs for this facility. This estimate includes $11.4 million for salaries and benefits of the 139 Motion Picture,
Broadcasting and Recorded Sound (MBRS) employees, 127 of which will be located
at the Culpeper facility, $7 million for preservation digitization, $3.5 million for
storage, and $1.5 million for infrastructure support. The operating capacities reflected in these costs were established based on our urgent need to preserve at-risk
national heritage collections dating back nearly 120 years, as well as the need to
begin ingesting significant new born-digital works. Fortunately, the proven technologies to achieve this have recently become available, and the Packard Humanities Institutes gift of the state-of-the-art NAVCC facility will allow the Library to
take advantage of these technologies for the first time.

Dr. BILLINGTON. We were actually applying for less money for

this because there was significant reduction in FTEs from last
year, because a lot of that was for the transition period, where we
had to install things in sequence and that required a little bit of
a buildup in the last couple of years.
We can give you an estimate of how it looks. The current situation is that in November they turned over the ownership of the
central plant to the Architect of the Capitol. This is a complex operation because the work is basically being done by the Packard Humanities Institute, but we are putting in the infrastructure. In December they turned over the ownership of the collections building
to the AOC for occupancy by the Library and we have already
begun moving staff and collectionswe have six collection maintenance employees now out there working, and the first collection
items just this past month were moved from Capitol Hill. The remaining collections will be staged for relocation from many different storage locations to be centralized into one location throughout this calendar year.
Construction continues on the conservation building and the nitrate vaults. The conservation building is where most of the staff
will be moved. We will be saving $500,000 of annual lease costs,
starting in 2008 as a result of the collections being moved to
Culpeper.
NATIONAL AUDIO-VISUAL CONSERVATION CENTERPACKARD
CONTRIBUTION

Mr. Chairman, I cannot say exactly what the cost contribution

from the Packard Humanities Institute will be, but it looks like it
will be the largest single private capital contribution to a Government building in history. We have to confirm that. It would not be

34
if you multiplied by inflationary factors. But it is a very, very major
contribution.
We think that the base will probably not be very different from
what it is once we get over this bump. I will try to give you as precise estimates as we can of what is anticipated. It is going to be
really quite an amazing facility. One thing that is particularly interesting and important about this for the long-range cost is that
the capacity is so great out there that we should be able to accommodate for many, many years to come, even decades to come, the
anticipated storage need. It is also the first facility that will have
digital storage capability, so this is very, very important. It will reflect the standards that Congress asked the Library to establish
some years back for audio-visual conservation. It will be the largest
and the most up to date facility of its kind anywhere.
By this time next year it ought to be functioning, when it is finally conveyed from the Packard Humanities Institute through the
Architect of the Capitol to the Library for its usage.
PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT

Senator ALLARD. I want to press you a little bit on the Government Performance and Results Act. I would like to have you
present this subcommittee with a few examples of how the Library
measures its program performance and makes budget decisions
based on program effectiveness.
I want something specific. So if you can answer that question for
us if you are prepared to. I suspect you may not be, and you could
present us a written presentation about some specific programs
where you are applying it and making administrative decisions
based on what you are seeing on the performance objectives.
[The information follows:]
Since 1997, the Library has used the GPRA model as a guide in developing and
implementing its strategic plans and annual operating plans and performance reports. Library programs have made significant progress in developing goals and objectives that focus on measurable outcomes rather than outputs. Consistent with
GPRA requirements, the Library is once again reviewing and revising its strategic
plan which will include major changes to its goals, performance measures and targets, and assessment systems.
As part of the Librarys annual budget process, each office reviews their base resources to determine if additional investments are needed to support the Librarys
goals and objectives. Over the past few years, this review has become increasingly
important, as the transition to the digital age has required ongoing reengineering
of our work processes. Based on congressional direction and cognizant of Federal
budget realities, the Library took a hard look within and across organizations in determining its resource requirements for fiscal year 2007. As a result, our fiscal year
2007 budget request reflects only a 4 percent increase over fiscal year 2006, and a
net decrease in FTEsreflecting mostly mandatory pay and price level increases.
Despite these limits on our budget request, the Library will continue to maintain
relevance in the digital age with enhanced strategic planning and workforce transformation.
Some examples of how Library program offices applied GPRA principles in administrative and budget decisions include the following:
Copyright Office
As a standard practice, the Copyright Office monitors productivity and staffing
levels and adjusts hiring and overtime decisions based on trends in receipts, productivity, processing time and amounts of work in process. Based on these reviews, the
Copyright Office has taken actions such as cross-training staff to perform work in
areas needing assistance, focused overtime in areas where processing time was
longer, prioritized hiring for areas that were lagging in production. These decisions

35
were factors in a more than 50 percent reduction in average processing time for registrations since 2001.
The Copyright Reengineering Project is a multi-year effort to improve Copyrights
business processes based on an analysis of its current services to the public. With
the reengineering study recommendations, the Copyright Office developed a multiyear planning and budgeting strategy to reconfigure its current facilities, build a
new IT system, and reorganize its staff within the new business processes. After the
implementation of the reengineered processes and based on processing times, productivity rates and customer satisfaction findings, the Copyright Office will determine whether to reduce staffing in areas identified as overstaffed, reallocate and reassign staff based on workload across all areas and/or modify functions. One or all
of these actions may result in changes in future budget requests.
The Copyright Office planned for a significant reduction in renewal fee receipts
in fiscal year 2006 and beyond. The number of renewals has decreased over the past
several years based on statutory changes that made renewal registration voluntary.
As a result, the Copyright Office has requested a permanent decrease in its offsetting collections authority and a reduction of five FTEs in fiscal year 2007. The Copyright Office also determines its fees using activity-based costing methodologies to review costs of providing services while giving due consideration to the purposes of
the copyright system and the statutory requirement that the fees be fair and equitable. As a result of this review, the Copyright Office submitted a new fee proposal
to Congress on March 1, 2006.
Congressional Research Service
In early January-May 2005, CRS undertook three comprehensive studies of support areas: Production and Administrative Support, Technical Support Assistants,
and Audio-Visual Support. The objectives of the studies were to identify the services
and tasks currently performed by these support groups, determine the extent to
which the services and tasks met the broader CRS staff support needs, identify any
unmet support needs, and determine the most efficient and effective ways to satisfy
all support needs in the aforementioned areas vis-a-vis the Services investments in
technology. For the past few years, these support functions were carried out by approximately 59 staff, at an fiscal year 2006 estimated cost of $4.4 million.
To accomplish these objectives, CRS reviewed the position descriptions for staff
working in the support areas and, to ensure consistency, developed structured questions to collect needed data from a range of staff and using several methodologies.
CRS conducted numerous interviews with mid- and senior-level managers, support
staff in all three areas, and other staff who utilized the support services. Based on
the data collected via document reviews, meetings, consultations, and interviews,
CRS compiled comprehensive lists of the support services and tasks performed in
each support area. Afterwards, study participants (i.e. managers, support staff, and
users of the support services) were given copies of the lists and asked to verify the
extent and frequency which the support staff performed the identified services/tasks.
The analysis supporting these studies led the Services leadership to recognize
that the services and tasks provided by the 59 positions had been overtaken by advances in technology (desktop tools and operating environment) and were no longer
needed. The analysis demonstrated that new and different services and tasks were
needed; therefore leading to a workforce re-engineering of the administrative staff.
CRS has announced its intention to abolish the 59 outdated positions, effective September 30, 2006. The Service has also developed a cadre of fewer and new positions
that will provide administrative support.
The Services current budget can afford approximately 705 FTEs; however with
the 2006 one percent rescission and the prospect of a similar action in 2007, CRS
may need to adjust its FTE estimated ceiling down again. Retaining the 59 staff
indefinitely would have adversely impacted the Services ability to sustain an analytic capacity of between 335 and 350 staff while at the same time adjusting its total
workforce to the 705 ceiling. The long-term results of the CRS workforce re-engineering will be to free up FTEs and funding which can be redirected to maintain
the needed level of analytic capacity for the Congress.
For several years, CRS has maintained a business activity that provides courier
delivery and pick-up services directly to and from all Congressional member offices,
Congressional committee offices, the Capitol and CRS Research Centers as well as
intra-Service mail pick-up and delivery. The operation has been staffed with a combination of contractor personnel and CRS staffand at the time of the review
(early- to mid-2005), the operation was staffed with 11.5 contractor personnel (including an on-site supervisor) at an annual cost of $432,000 and three CRS mail
clerks at an annual cost of $131,500, for a total cost for this business activity of
$563,500. The contract was at the end of its five-year life; and, as a result, CRS

36
took advantage of an opportunity to analyze fully the current workload statistics
data as a means of updating the contract to better reflect the new ways in which
CRS communicates with and provides information to the Congressincreasingly via
electronic means.
CRS staff gathered, assimilated and analyzed historical financial cost information
on each element of the work performed under this contract. They conducted extensive interviews with an on-site supervisor, particularly regarding tasks performed,
methods employed, and operating procedures; staff toured the facilities, witnessed
operations, conducted survey-level time and motion studies, spoke with the couriers,
and discussed problems encountered and solutions developed; staff interviewed the
CRS Contracting Officers Technical Representative (COTR) regarding services performed under the contract, the history of the contractual services, and the performance of the contractor as well as performance standards prior to outsourcing; staff
gathered, assimilated, and analyzed month-by-month statistical data, from 1999
through 2005 including: delivery of packages and books to Congressional offices
(CRS provides this service the entire Library of Congress), pick-up of packages and
books from Congressional offices, sorting and bundling of non-rush Congressional
mail and delivery to House and Senate Post Offices, preparation of mail for Congressional district offices, and sorting of CRS mail.
The study concluded that the activity continues to provide a vital service which
supports the core mission of CRSbasic to meeting the needs and fulfilling the requests of Congress and Congressional staff for information. Customer surveys, from
both Congressional and CRS staff, reflected a high satisfaction level with both the
service and the performance of the contractor. However, the workload statistics data
confirmed that the number of items exchanged via the courier service had been, and
continues to decline each year. The analysis revealed that the services could likely
be performed by one, and possibly two, less personnel.
The study results provided CRS staff with substantive data that produced a renegotiated contract with ten contractor personnel and one CRS staffa total annual
cost reduction of $84,000 which has been redirected back into the Services overall
budget.
CRS has for many years maintained a contractor-operated technology help desk.
The contract covered four highly skilled personnel to provide immediate desktop
services to CRS staff. While there was no debate about the on-going need for desktop services given CRSs reliance on technology tools, this contract was at the end
of its five-year life and warranted a thorough review in order to redefine the scope
of work and level of expertise needed to match the technology environment of 2006
and beyond. This study was conducted at about the same time as the functional review of approximately 18 Technical Support Assistants.
The review began with an examination of the contract documentation, contractor
workload statistics, monthly billings over the life of the contract, interviews with
CRS program personnel, principally the COTR, to gather data on such questions as
the services provided under the contract, the need for the activity, the definition of
successful service delivery, methods and factors used to evaluate the contractors
performance. The financial data and contractor workload statistics were analyzed.
The review included an assessment of contractor levels, current workload and the
real cost of the activity, including the CRS management overhead, contractor management fees, and the cost of CRS staff with greater technical expertise at the GS
14 level who handle escalated service calls which are outside the scope of the help
desk contract. Based on the review of documentation, interview data, and financial
information, alternative methods of performing the activity were developed and a
cost and benefits alternatives analysis was prepared.
On the surface, the viable alternatives costed out within $50,000 per year of each
other; however, best business practices support that contracts typically provide the
better short-term solution when the environment is changing. The Services recent
need for expanded help desk hours of coverage to better match the work hours of
CRS analysts and information professionals (from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.) is one example of needed flexibility. Another example is the need for expanded expertise to
help integrate new software and operating systems into the Services products, e.g.,
with sophisticated graphics and tables. The entire technology environment in CRS
is undergoing a major transformation as the Service moves to a new authoring and
publishing system. A contract will ensure that CRS has the flexibility to respond
quickly to the specific work skills needed by the Service and to keep pace with continuing changes/advances in the field. This kind of flexibility could not be achieved
with federal employees employed under specific job classifications, grade levels, or
in a union environment, such as CRS, where changes in work conditions are generally bargainable. Even changes in work hours cannot be effected easily with CRS
employees in the bargaining unit.

37
The new help desk contract will be awarded within the next few months.
Library Services
After analyzing its in-house costs for processing the same materials and seeking
to reduce its costs, the Library contracted with its Italian book vendor to supply
shelf-ready books. These books arrived at the Library fully cataloged, labeled and
ready to be added to the collections for immediate use. As a result, three acquisitions staff were freed up to be reassigned to other critical processing tasks. The Library expects to use this model to expand to other book vendors for future contracts
to continue to reduce its processing costs.
Taking advantage of the functionality of the Web, the Library implemented a Web
based exchange program to enhance its acquisition of materials through exchange.
Stemming from a business process improvement project, the program improves the
Library exchanges with its partners; reduces Library staff time needed to manage
and execute the program; reduces space needed to store the duplicate material to
be offered on exchange; and reduces the number of times items are physically handled. The Librarys new Web programwhich now has over 740 participantsfacilitates its ability to receive reciprocal items from the exchange partners to help build
its collections at much reduced costs. In fiscal year 2005, the Librarys acquisitions
divisions received 148,696 pieces from its exchange partners.
The Cataloging in Publication (CIP) Program was established in 1971 to provide
advance cataloging copy for publications most likely to be acquired by the Nations
libraries. Since the Programs inception, Library staff have produced catalog records
for 1.3 million titles, saving public and research libraries the cost of creating these
records. As an efficiency measure, the Programwhich has over 5,000 publishers
that submit their prepublication datahas made the transition to electronic processing using the Web. The Electronic CIP Program (ECIP)which now has over
3,600 publishers participatinghas saved staff time (equal to three full time staff),
has dramatically reduced throughput time for processing titles, and has overall reduced the per title cost of processing CIP titles. The Library saves annually $10,000
in postage as a result of not having to mail cataloging data in print form to the
publishers. ECIP has enabled the Library to achieve additional savings by having
other research libraries take on the cataloging of preprint publicationsCornell
University and Northwestern University currently contribute annually approximately 200 cataloged titles.
The Librarys bibliographic access divisions have analyzed the costs of producing
a catalog record. The costs are driven by both the complexity of the cataloging rules
and procedures and by the level of staff who create the records. To address the latter, the Library instituted a pilot in one of its divisions to have technicians use catalog records produced by other libraries as the basis for the Library of Congress
record. Using lower level staff has yielded measurable gains. The divisions production of copy cataloging increased by thirty percent between fiscal year 2004 and fiscal year 2005 (from 9,725 titles to 12,670). Concomitant to the divisions increase
in copy cataloging output was a one-third decrease in the number of hours devoted
to more expensive full, original cataloging between the two fiscal years (from 67,582
hours to 57,231). This model will serve in planning fuller scale use of technicians
for processing functions commensurate with their level of expertise.
The Library has worked with the library community to reduce the complexity and
cost of producing catalog records. In collaboration with the library community, an
analysis was done of the record content with a goal of removing elements that were
not necessary to provide satisfactory service to users seeking information. The resulting record, a core level catalog record, reduces the cost for cataloging per item
by as much as 43 percent. The Library has now adopted the core level record as
its default catalog record. These records meet the needs of end user while meeting
the needs of other libraries to provide access to their collections.
In fiscal year 2005 Library Services contracted with an information services research firm to assist with a strategic assessment of the needs and expectations of
the National Librarys constituents. A nationwide survey is currently underway to
gather data that will be used in the process of assessing the effectiveness of National Library programs. The results from this and other data-collection efforts will
inform future Library Services administrative decisions.
RESULTS-BASED DECISIONMAKING

General SCOTT. Yes, sir. We could answer the question now, but
in the interest of time, I would
Senator ALLARD. We have time.

38
General SCOTT. The way the Library implements its planning
process is the Librarian each year issues guidance to each one of
the program offices within the Library, and he gives his objectives
and goals around which the other programs have to respond and
then come up with theirs. The offices will come up with an annual
plan, and that annual plan is based upon the measurable task,
where possible. Now, all the tasks cannot be measured, but where
they can be measured, offices list those tasks that will be accomplished.
Then when the budget has been put together, those tasks and
those goals become part of our operating plan that we submit to
the Congress.
In addition to coming up with the annual plan, we also have for
the senior managers, a performance evaluation system that reflects
what goals and objectives they have worked on and achieved during the past calendar year. Those objectives and goals are very specific and do tie back to the budget.
Senator ALLARD. Can you give us some examples of where there
was not adequate performance for one reason or another?
General SCOTT. There was inadequate?
Senator ALLARD. Where there was not adequate performance and
because of inadequate performance maybe you reduced that function, perhaps shifted dollars to another area of the Library where
there was better performance. Can you think of some examples like
that in your budget?
General SCOTT. I cannot off the top of my head give you an example of that.
Senator ALLARD. That is what we are looking for. It is those
kinds of administrative decisions that you may have been making
in the Library of Congress, where they actually had an impact on
how you managed the program. Maybe you took some money from
it because you perceived the performance could have been better
and should have been better and you had to reevaluate it. Perhaps
you had another area over here where you saw a need, where they
were meeting the goals and objectives, and maybe shifted a little.
We are looking for some specific examples of applications. You
are saying the right things, but we are just looking for areas you
can point to where you actually used that to make administrative
decisions.
General SCOTT. Yes, sir, we understand and we will get you some
examples.
Senator ALLARD. If you feel like you need some help in outlining
that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) does a good job
on objectives and making some decisions on that. Maybe to consult
with them might be helpful in tailoring what we are looking for as
far as program guidance. Okay?
General SCOTT. Yes, sir, we will do that.
DIGITAL TALKING BOOKS PROGRAM

Senator ALLARD. On to the Books for the Blind and Physically

Handicapped. You have been working on it for several years to develop what we call a digital talking book to replace the current cassette-type system, to make books available to the blind. Over the

39
next several years, approximately $75 million will be requested to
produce the new machines.
In fiscal year 2006 you plan to spend $12 million to purchase the
old machines which will soon become obsolete. Why do we need to
purchase any additional cassette machines in 2006 when I am told
there are over 700,000 cassette machines currently in circulation,
inventory, or repair? Then maybe during this you might talk a little bit about the status of the new plan.
Dr. BILLINGTON. I think we will ask Mr. Kurt Cylke, who is the
Director of that program, up. But I just want to say that we have
to maintain the service and we have to maintain the inventory during the transition. We are on the schedule that has been long established by Mr. Cylke and by the service, but we cannot have a
drop in the current analog service until the digital program is operational. We are asking for a $19 million startup. That was what
was always intended. That is not a change in the plan.
We cannot have a drop-off in the service in the meantime. Mr.
Cylke can elaborate.
CASSETTE MACHINE REPLACEMENT

Senator ALLARD. Do we have cassette recorders over here that

could be repaired, that we could put in without having to buy new
ones during this transition period?
Mr. CYLKE. We have, Mr. Chairman. We have approximately
740,000 cassette machines in the field. Many of themmost of
them, of course, are in use by individuals. There are a certain number of inventory and then there are a certain number being repaired.
Let me get to your original question of why we are buying machines in 2006. Working very closely with the Inspector General,
we had a study performed that projected out the needs for the cassette machine until we can get into the digital program. We have
23 million copies of books in libraries and warehouses around the
United States. We have the 700,000 machines using them and we
are going into the digital age.
As you heard from Dr. Billington, we are proposing to request
$19.1 million a year for the next 4 years into the budget to permit
us to buy those digital machines, and then withdraw the additional
funds from the budget and go on. However we need cassette machines to keep the people who are in the program now able to use
the millions of books and magazines that are available.
Senator ALLARD. Would you agree with these figures: We have
about 133,517 available for loan from the Library?
Mr. CYLKE. That is correct.
Senator ALLARD. So that we have a total of 720,000
Mr. CYLKE. Something close to that. That is correct. Yes.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. And then an additional 42,000 machines
you are planning on buying in 2006?
Mr. CYLKE. That is correct. As a matter of fact, I believe the contract will be signed today or tomorrow. Again, what we did was
make an in-depth study of the number of machines that we would
require to keep the cassette program going until we can get into
the digital program. This is our final buy of machines.

40
This report was done by an outside contractor, reviewed by Mr.
Schornagel, the Inspector General, and his staff. Suggestions were
made and the number of machines, the 40,000 plus, was based on
a review with the Inspector General.
Senator ALLARD. Then you are just going to flat drop off a cliff
so to speak?
ANALOG-DIGITAL TRANSITION

Mr. CYLKE. There will be no future purchase. That is it. We have

been in the cassette program from the early 1970s, but this is our
last purchase of cassette machines.
Senator ALLARD. And you are going to phase these out?
Mr. CYLKE. They are going to be phased out, but the new machines that come inagain, we have millions of copies of books on
the shelves for use in the cassette format. All these books for the
last 2 years and into the future will be in digital masters. The digital machine will be available to us in the beginning of 2008 and
it just depends on how much money or how the funds are made
available by the Congress as to how many we can build.
But we would expect to buy over a 4-year period the great bulk
of those machines.
Senator ALLARD. Are these machines that you have now in a format that can easily be transferred over to the digital format?
Mr. CYLKE. The machines are notthe machines are analog cassette machines. They are four-track, half-speed cassette machines.
But the analog books that are available on the shelves we are converting at a rate of a couple of thousand a year of the more important titles. Now, obviously in a public library environment many of
the books would not be replaced. But we are converting things like
the classics where we have them and going through what we call
an A to D process, analog to digital.
We should have 20,000 digital books by 2008. That would be reconversion as well as new books that have been mastered that way.
Senator ALLARD. The public will use the analog and the new ones
that you are going to put on the digital?
Mr. CYLKE. Digital only.
Senator ALLARD. Digital only?
Mr. CYLKE. Well, analog and digital for 1 or 2 years.
Senator ALLARD. But then as those others get used up, then you
will put them on digital; is that your plan?
Mr. CYLKE. If I understand what you are saying, would the 23
million copies be converted. We will convert only the ones that will
be of continuing use. In other words, every year we do a certain
number of fiction items, best sellers.
Senator ALLARD. I see.
Mr. CYLKE. They certainly would notold best sellers would certainly not be converted. I do not want to offend anyone, but
Senator ALLARD. You do not want to offend anybodys favorite
book here.
Mr. CYLKE. Right.
Senator ALLARD. Now, I want to refer to the IG here. Do you
have some comments on this program? Do you think that we are
going in the right direction? Can you comment on that?

41
DIGITAL TALKING BOOKS AUDIT

Mr. SCHORNAGEL. Yes, I do. My office issued an audit report on

this program back in 2002 that deals a lot with the issues that you
are raising and recommended that a formal analysis be done to
bridge the transition from the analog to the digital technology and
reduce the number of purchases of new machines, and that has
been done; and also to increase the repairs of the used machines.
My office has been very actively involved in the last few years
in supporting cost analysis and negotiation strategies with this contractor, and has resulted in several million dollars in savings. I
think that the old analog machine purchases are necessary. The
fact that we are going to cut it off, we really could not justify paying higher unit costs to buy smaller quantities in 2007 and beyond.
It is going to be 2014 to 2017 before these old analog machines
are completely phased out. People have a tendency to want to hang
onto them and not want to change technologies. So I think that the
strategy and the fact that Mr. Cylke is getting the full life out of
all the old machines that the taxpayers are supporting the purchase of is really a reasonable approach.
CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER

Senator ALLARD. Let us move on to the Capitol Visitor Center

(CVC) tunnel. There was a report in Roll Call just this last Tuesday on page 3 that part of the tunnel project might be paid for out
of private funds. Is this an accurate report and would you like to
comment on that article, Dr. Billington?
Dr. BILLINGTON. Yes. That is not an accurate report. The quote
of the CVC spokesman was erroneous. The spokesman himself told
my chief of staff yesterday that he had been misquoted and had already issued a correction. The Library of Congress was not contacted by the reporter about the article before it was written, so the
issue might have been cleared up before publication.
Let me make it very clear. We understand and have always understood that the cap of $10 million is firm and we have never requested any changes to the construction of the tunnel. We have always understood this appropriated amount to be a very firm limitation. The Architect of the Capitol has given us full assurances that
the $10 million appropriated will fully cover the costs of the construction and Jefferson Building changes as presently proposed.
I could go into more detail if you want.
Senator ALLARD. I just want you to clear the record and make
sure you are comfortable that we have the facts on record.
Dr. BILLINGTON. Yes. The original appropriation allocation was
$10 million. We understand that the AOC has spent $5.1 million
for tunnel construction, which includes a $200,000 contingency, and
that just recently they have put out a contract for $4 million for
changes, that was issued just last week.
That leaves a balance of $900,000 for contingency, which is well
under the $10 million cap.
Senator ALLARD. Any problem with that cap?
Dr. BILLINGTON. We do not see any problems with it, and we are
not requesting any changes or additions.

42
Senator ALLARD. I would expect that with the opening of the
Capitol Visitor Center you are going to get more visitors, more people wanting to visit the Library of Congress. You are not going to
have to negotiate across the street and you will probably get more
members as well as more visitors wanting to use that tunnel.
Are you expecting a large increase in visitors and are you doing
anything to try and accommodate that?
CELEBRATION OF AMERICAN CREATIVITY

Dr. BILLINGTON. Yes. We have been looking into this in some detail. The estimate has been given that as many as 3.5 million people will be coming into the new visitors center. We want to use the
public spaces of the Jefferson Building as the focal point for additional visitors to the Library. We have done some very careful analysis and planning, with a lot of consultation, all, I might add, on
nonappropriated funds. This is all being done with private fundingwhat we will do to prepare for more visitors will depend on
what we can raise from private funding.
The idea will be to celebrate and illustrate and involve people in
one of the most important contributions that the Congress of the
United States has made to the American people. No other government in the world has as consistently and as fully preserved the
private sector creativity of its people as has the United States, and
in particular the legislative branch of Government.
Once the Copyright Office was placed in the legislative branch of
Government, we were able to retain in the Librarys collection as
closely as possible the mint record of American creativity. By housing innumerable collections, we have way over 5 million pieces of
music, we have the worlds largest collection of movies, nearly 1
million movies and moving image titlesthese are amazing accomplishments that the Congress has achieved. We want to celebrate
this, which we think will supplement and round out the story of
the Congress and of its governance, its oversight and legislative
functions, which will be illustrated in the Jefferson Buildings expanded exhibits.
We think this will be an important illustration, calling attention
to a great achievement of Congress, which we have been fortunate
enough to be the custodians and administrators of. This summer
we are bringing in interns to find and illustrate more things in the
copyright deposits that can be celebrated and realized. We will use
our public spaces, without interfering with the traditional usages
of the Library, to in a dignified way both introduce visitors to the
importance of knowledge and to give them some experience of creativity. This experience will be richly illustrated, not only by the
artists and the performers, but also by the inventors and the other
scientists and inventors that made America the creative country it
is. The creative use of freedom, and the Congress crucial role in
preserving this record of creativity will be the main thing we are
going to be illustrating and celebrating.
Senator ALLARD. I think you have a great facility there. As you
know, my wife uses that Library personallywe go over there and
walk the halls and do the searches through the computer and
through your catalogue. I think a lot of Members send their staff
over, but we will wander over there personally. I would agree that

43
it is a great facility. We should be very proud of it. We are privileged in this country to have that kind of a facility available for us.
So we want to do everything we can to help make it better and
continue to make it meet the needs of the American people.
WORLD DIGITAL LIBRARY

Let me move on. I want to talk a little bit about the World Digital Library. In November the Library entered into a cooperative
agreement with Google to develop a World Digital Library. Apparently Google is contributing $3 million to this effort. Could you update us on this project?
Dr. BILLINGTON. I think this is very exciting. As you know, we
had close to 4 billion electronic transactions last year. Our American Memory website has brought more than 10 million items of
American history and culture online. We are continuing to augment
that with materials that highlight creativity and the culture. In
fact, there will be a connection between the website and exhibit
space within the Jefferson Building. The visitors experience will include an invitation to use our educational website as well.
What we are adding here, again with this important startup private money which is purely philanthropicit is a nonexclusive arrangementis putting the memory of other cultures online.
It is important to dramatize to the world, both to help America
understand the cultures of foreign countries, with whom we are
more and more involved, our already large educational website and
training, facilitating its educational use, to provide windows into
world cultures. We are going to begin with pilot projects with other
countries. We are going to launch the World Digital Library very
carefully, as we did with the American Memory project that began
our educational and inspirational online presence.
PARTNERSHIPS WITH NATIONAL LIBRARIES

We are going to do it jointly. We already have agreements with

six other national libraries to do joint projects. Our original project
with the Russians, which was funded and initiated by congressional action, is approaching 1 million items. We are getting great
cooperation from them. They are giving us access to nearly everything we want.
So we have had a successful startup with special funds, and now
agreements with a wide variety of countriesour most recent
agreement is with the National Library of Egypt. I was just in
Egypt and we are going to expand that collaboration. We have in
our collections the history of Islamic science, which is something
that has been well preserved, not just in Egypt but also in America
and in the Library of Congress.
We are going to be developing and celebrating the memories of
other cultures, which we think will appeal to the other cultures,
with bilingual commentary, and a high audio-visual component in
the middle. This initial grant, and it is a purely philanthropic one,
is one of the first that they have made in this way. It is going to
be a very positive first step.
We are considering particularly expanding into a major enterprise the small beginnings we have made with Brazil and Egypt.
We will be looking into a variety of prospects to take our joint

44
projects out to some of the other ancient cultures of the world and
dramatize to them that America has been a guardian and a preserver of much of the worlds cultural heritage. We will, in cooperation with the repositories in those countries, present it together, an
American and Egyptian collaboration, and an American and Brazilian collaboration, and American collaboration with these other
countries.
We already have cooperative agreements with six countries, as I
mentioned. We believe that America can play a leading role in
helping develop better communication about the different cultures
of the world that will increase our understanding of them and their
appreciation of what we have done in this country to preserve their
heritage as well as our own.
Senator ALLARD. Very good.
OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP PROGRAM

Now, one last subject I want to cover has to do with the Open
World Leadership Program. With respect to the Open World Program, I understand that Ambassador James Collins is undertaking
a thorough review of the program at your request. Can you tell me
when this effort will be complete and what particular aspects of the
program may be overhauled? Now I understand that this is not a
part of the Library, but you are the chair of that program and so
I wondered if you could give us just a brief report on what you expect out of that thorough review.
Dr. BILLINGTON. Yes, sir. We are doing, as we have already done
and are refining within the Library, a comprehensive strategic plan
for the Open World Program. Open World has been very successful.
It is a unique undertaking in the legislative branch. It has brought
more than 10,000 emerging young leaders: Russians, a growing
program with the Ukraine, and startup experimental programs
with Lithuania and Uzbekistan. There have been many suggestions
from Members of Congress and others about this unique program,
which is modeled in a lot of respects on the 1.5 percent of the Marshall Plan that was spent bringing young Germans over to the
United States after the war. Open World is bringing over people
from the former Soviet Union after the cold war.
Now, we have tasked Ambassador Collins, who was Ambassador
to Russia when the program was initiated in 1999, to conduct a
strategic planand he is a member of the board of Open World,
which of course has an independent existence within the legislative
branch of Government, although certain administrative functions
are performed still by the Library and I do chair the program.
OPEN WORLD STRATEGIC PLAN

This strategic plan will be completed in late June or early July.

We will present it at the board meeting and if agreed to by the
board, we will provide for the implementation of the strategic plan.
We will be looking at such questions as possible changes in the nature of the exchanges, which have been very successfulthe areas
to be covered. We now cover rule of law both in Russia and
Ukraine, which is so central to the prospects of democracydemocratic development in those countriesand that has been an extraordinarily successful program. That is sure to survive.

45
But other programs, exactly what we should stress, whether this
should be expanded to other countries and at what level are under
review. We are discussing those issues of course in the strategic
planning processthe staff has been working on it from the end of
last year. The board meeting in December determined that we will
reach conclusions and have the formal strategic plan from which
future budgetary submissions will be derived.
We will also be looking into, very closely into, possible economies,
and we will be probably making changes. We will bring on fairly
shortly a full-time executive director. We have had very good leadership up to this point. Geraldine Otremba, who does our congressional relations, was handling it at first. Aletta Waterhouse, who
was also with it from the beginning, has been acting director since
September. We will have a new executive director, a permanent appointment that we will be able to announce very shortly.
That executive director will have a chance to work with and implement the strategic plan. There are a number of GAO suggestions, most of which we have already addressed, but they will be
folded in in a full accounting into a full strategic plan from which
we will derive our next budgetary submission.
Our current budget request represents basically a continuation of
what we are doing, more or less, with only a marginal adjustment
this time for unavoidable cost increases, mostly in air fares.
Senator ALLARD. I look forward to seeing what that final report
is.
Dr. BILLINGTON. We would hope to report to, discuss our strategic plan with the Appropriations Committees before the board
takes final action on it as well.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

Senator ALLARD. Very good. Thank you.

I do not have anything else. Any summary comments?
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were
submitted to the Library for response subsequent to the hearing:]
QUESTIONS SUBMITTED

BY

SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

GENPAC

Question. The Library requested a base adjustment for GENPAC of $2 million

that is more or less evenly divided between serial and electronic purchases to help
keep pace with the greatly increased cost of serial and electronic materials (without
which) risks eroding the foundation of the many services provided by the Library
to the Congress and the nation. The Librarys justification notes the rapidly growing number of electronic journals (approximately 35,000), and that the cost of journals has been rising at the rate of over 14 percent per year. How much of the Librarys costs are for providing the same information in different formats? What percentage of the journal collection is available in multiple media? What criteria are
used to decide whether to offer journals in electronic and print formats?
Answer. The Library generally does not purchase content in multiple formats. In
a few instances, when materials exist in both print and electronic versions, the Library will acquire both.
Duplication of information may occur for several reasons:
The manner in which publishers package journals into sets or aggregated databases causes duplicative content to be included in the Librarys acquisitions for
the collections. An electronic database may have several hundred journal titles
included, two-thirds of which are unique to the Librarys collections and therefore wanted. The remaining one-third may be duplicative of print journals, but
because of the value of the unique two-thirds, the database is acquired (either
purchased or licensed).

46
Some publishers provide a free print copy of a journal when the electronic journal is purchased.
Electronic publications package their content uniquely, often offering significantly increased functionality, indexing, and ability to manipulate it. Because
of the value that is added, the Library is providing a service to Congress and
other users by purchasing an electronic copy, even when a print version is already in the Librarys collections.
Because of the accelerating number of electronic journals being published and the
Librarys vast collection of print journals, the percentage of the journal collection
available in multiple formats cannot be determined. Because the long-term preservation of digital content still poses a challenge and because the Library has not completed its development of a digital repository to archive electronic journals for future
generations, the Library has determined that it must continue to acquire print copies of journals that exist in both electronic and print form. The Library has taken
steps, however, to mitigate its expenditures for electronic content. It is developing
trusted partnerships with other organizations to ensure long term access to electronic journal content, which will allow the Library to cease purchasing duplicate
copies of those titles. It also is testing the deposit of electronic journals for copyright
and seeking change in the legislation for the mandatory deposit of various kinds of
electronic content. The Library further initiated an effort several years ago to reduce its acquisition of multiple print copies when it was also acquiring an electronic
version, thereby considerably reducing the duplication.
When deciding on the format of journals, the Library follows these guidelines:
If a journal is issued in only one format (print or electronic), the Library acquires the title based on the importance of the content.
Electronic versions of print materials already in the collections are acquired to
improve ease of access or to allow multiple users access to high-demand content.
Both print and electronic versions of journals are acquired if the second format
is offered at no additional cost.
Print or microform journals are acquired when electronic versions exist, to ensure long term preservation.
Print or microform journals are acquired when electronic versions exist, pending
completion of the Librarys development of its digital repository.
COPYRIGHT RECORDS PRESERVATION

Question. How will digitizing these records change your future maintenance and
storage costs?
Answer. The primary purpose of this project is to preserve the recordsto provide
an archival backup for the analog records, protecting against the possibility of loss
of this irreplaceable, one-of-a-kind collection. During the first six years of the
project, the records, including bound record books, microfilm reels, and catalog cards
will be scanned and rudimentary index data will be captured. This will ensure the
records can be archived and be accessed electronically at a basic level that will facilitate further indexing. However, the title, author, and copyright owners are not
searchable terms in the rudimentary index. For the public who rely on our records,
this index would not be a substitute for the original records until detailed indexing
is accomplished in future years.
The Copyright Office needs to retain all these analog records until that time,
when the individual electronic records will be integrated with the post-1977 copyright records currently available for search and retrieval. The detailed indexing
project is estimated to cost as much as $64 million.
The Copyright Office will continue to house the card catalog on the fourth floor
of the Madison Building to facilitate access for those who use these records. By the
time the first phase of the project is completed, the Office plans to have its own storage facility at Fort Meade, maintained by the Architect of the Capitol. The record
books, now in a leased storage facility offsite, would eventually be stored there.
Total savings once Fort Meade storage is available would be $200,000 per year, increasing each year based on increased volume and rates charged for commercial
storage.
Therefore, digitizing these records for preservation during the next six years will
not have an impact on maintenance and storage costs. If the detailed indexing is
completed in the years following this first phase, a decision could be made to destroy
the analog record. However, this discussion is years away.
WORKFORCE TRANSFORMATION

Question. The request of $781,000 for the renewal and development of the Librarys workforce is described as an initial investment beginning in fiscal year 2007.

47
Are long range estimates available for the expected costs of replacing and retraining
the workforce? Describe why these particular initiatives were selected and how they
will directly support a larger workforce plan. Why fund these initiatives before there
is a comprehensive strategic plan to guide the transformation of the workforce? How
does the workforce transformation project, the strategic planning process, and the
program assessment framework relate? What information do you hope to get out of
these efforts that you currently do not have?
Answer. The Library has and will continue to evaluate all aspects of its business
functions, including work processes, equipment, IT and other infrastructure support,
and staff performing the work. Periodic reviews are routine business practice but
most certainly critical when the world demands new processes as witnessed by the
digital transformation. The Librarys evaluations are taking place under the broad
umbrella of strategic planning and through program specific assessments. No matter which mechanism is used, people will always play an important part of any
transformation. They are not only a cornerstone in change itself, but needed to implement change.
Given the aging workforce, with skills once valued but no longer needed in the
future, the Library has begun its workforce transformation to keep up with new
business functions and to lay the foundation for new functions on the horizon.
Most of the fiscal year 2007 funding requested under workforce transformation is
to support basic services that would be needed even if a major transformation were
not occurring. For example, $225,000 supports 600 online courses, annual subscriptions to leadership development courses, mentoring programs, and career planning
and counselingservices that are commonplace in most similarly-sized agencies, but
are not currently available or adequately resourced in the Library. The online and
annual subscriptions also provide a more cost-efficient option for training than the
traditional classroom approach.
A total of $98,000 supports one additional employee in the Librarys learning development center, to ensure the center is fully staffed and can manage the size of
a training program needed for a large workforce. A total of $127,000 provides interpreter services to meet the demands of our diverse workforce, including those who
are physically challenged. Finally, $231,000 is for a summer intern recruitment program that will not only help address the Librarys workload, but also provide a rich
pool of candidates for future jobs at the Library.
The remaining $100,000 goes beyond traditional training but asks the question
of what type of employee and what skills will be needed in the future. Funding will
help determine digital competencies, and it is this study that will lay the foundation
for a more comprehensive strategic plan for transforming the Librarys workforce
through retraining or new hiringwith new and different position descriptions.
Until this analysis is completed, the Library cannot project future costs but hopes
to be in position to do so by the fiscal year 2008 budget.
Without the requested funding, the Library will fall further behind the rest of the
Federal Government and the private sector, costing more in lost productivity and
lost opportunities.
DIGITAL COMPETENCIES

Question. Since fiscal year 2001, the number of items circulated has declined by
over 24 percent and reference services by 17 percent. Internet transactions have increased by 214 percent. What has the Library done to redeploy staff? How do these
trends relate to your request for skills training?
Answer. In fiscal year 2007, the Library is requesting $100,000 to begin the development of a digital competencies initiative. This initiative will identify what new
skills/staff are needed to support the digital transformation of the Librarys services,
compare those skills to staff already on board, and highlight the gaps between the
two. The results will be used to develop a comprehensive staffing and business plan
that will outline action steps and related resources needed to retrain and/or reassign
current staff, hire new staff, and enhance IT and other equipment to support staff.
The Library already has focused on a few areas such as CRS and Library Services
where the VERA/VSIP programs were used to help retire employees whose skills are
no longer needed, allowing the Library to hire the expertise or equipment needed
to meet the new services and new demands placed upon the Library as a result of
the digital transformation. While offices will continue their program reviews, the
digital competencies initiative will be a Library-wide review that will not only focus
on each office but on how the Library works as a whole, for a more cohesive and
integrated transition into the future.

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CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE REALIGNMENT

Question. CRS determined last year that some 59 production support, technology
support, and audio-visual positions were no longer needed. You have determined
that eliminating the 59 positions will save CRS approximately $4.4 million. How is
this savings reflected in your fiscal year 2007 budget request? If analysts will become responsible for tasks previously done by production and technical support
staff, (e.g., formatting, computer problems) wont diversion to non-analytical tasks
lower current efficiencies and effectiveness of CRS employees?
Answer. This question is based upon two fundamentally incorrect assumptions.
First, CRS never stated that the elimination of the 59 positions would save $4.4
million. CRS is undergoing a workforce re-engineering effort that will enable the
Service to hire different staff who can contribute directly and fully to meeting the
Services mission. The funds that would have been used to pay the salaries and benefits of the 59 support staff will be redirected to pay for primarily research analysts.
The Services fiscal year 2007 request reflects a budget that would support the ongoing need for approximately 705 FTEs. There are no savings associated with this
workforce realignment; and retaining the 59 support staff indefinitely would adversely impact the Services ability to sustain adequate core research capacity.
In fiscal years 2005 and 2006, CRS requested a one-time budget base increase to
close the gap on rising staff costs and give the Service a permanent budget base
that could sustain a workforce of 729 FTEs. With only $500,000 approved for this
purpose in fiscal year 2006 (none in fiscal year 2005), the Service had to implement
a strategy that would adjust its permanent workforce down to 705 full-time equivalents (FTEs) while retaining an analytic capacity of 48 percent to 50 percent of the
total staffing compositionbetween 335 and 350 staff.
In fiscal year 2005, the House Appropriations Committee explicitly stated that it
expected Legislative Branch agencies to take into consideration the overall budget
constraints placed on the entire Federal budget and to submit more reasonable requests. At the same time, the Committee directed agencies to identify opportunities
that would streamline operations, expand outsourcing in a range of operating activities, utilize existing technology to enhance efficiency, and implement management
changes to increase efficiency and effectiveness of operations. Further, the Committee directed the Library to conduct a study to determine whether any duplicative
functions existed between the Library and CRS. The same year, this Committees
report language stated, owing to budget constraints, the Committee is unable to
recommend additional increases. These policies were endorsed by the Conference
language encouraging agencies to submit more reasonable budget requests. Similar
policies and concepts were expressed in the fiscal year 2006 House report language.
Agency heads were directed to embrace change and recognize staff and workforce
as the most important agency asset. Agency heads were directed to look within for
ways to achieve mission as opposed to seeking additional budgetary increases. In
2006, the Senate re-emphasized the applicability of GPRA. Again, the Conference
language endorsed these policy statements. CRS has heeded the Congress direction
to find ways to streamline operations and improve efficiency.
The CRS fiscal year 2007 request reflects the reality of the budget environment
and respectfully recognizes the Congress expectation that the Service find a way to
accomplish its mission within an organization of 700 to 705 FTEs. Right now, CRS
needs the support of the Congress in order to continue its efforts for achieving a
workforce transformation using the federal employment tools and authorities available, such as separation incentives, voluntary early retirements, and possibly a reduction in force (RIF). The Library is seeking two new administrative provisions
that would give any remaining affected CRS staff (as of September 30, 2006) opportunities for priority placement in other federal agencies should a RIF become necessary. Your support and approval of that request would also be extremely helpful.
In 2007, CRS plans to redirect the funds that would have been used to pay the salaries and benefits of the 59 staff to acquiring the capacities, work skills, and competencies needed in 2007 and beyond. Your support of the Services fiscal year 2007
full budget request and your endorsement for maintaining the management flexibility needed to align or realign the organization to match the changing and complex
congressional agenda within the financial resources available will go a long way in
helping to ensure that the Service can indeed provide the continued level and quality of services that Congress is seeking.
Second, the question incorrectly assumes that CRS analytical staff will now be responsible for performing production and/or technical support taskswhich is not the
case. The question incorrectly assumes that CRS management is not focused on ensuring a most cost effective and efficient operationwhich is also not the case. CRS
has always been committed to providing analysts with the most technologically ro-

49
bust workstations available. Advances in technology in the past ten years have provided automated tools on the analysts desktop with most of the needed formatting
and production capabilities built in; and, these new technology tools have eliminated
much of the need for production support personnel (the basis of the elimination of
these functions). CRS is currently investing in the development of a new authoring
and publishing system that will even further advance the ease of incorporating sophisticated graphics, tables, and pictures directly into CRS reports during the writing/authoring phase. The new system will allow increased analytic capacitynot decreased capacity. The system will make creation and dissemination of CRS reports
even more efficient and more readily available to the Congress.
The CRS analysts needs for publication production support will be provided centrally by the CRS Electronic Research Products Office (ERPO) which is staffed by
a cadre of experienced editors, skilled in using advanced technology tools to produce
products in multiple formats. CRS is building capacity in this office as a means to
centralize, streamline, and provide uniform and high quality support across the
Service. At the same time, the CRS Technology Office is revamping existing contracts to enhance its desktop user support operations, which will also include upto-date technology professionals who can resolve quickly the staffs desktop computer problems. Managing modern technology in a centralized business model ensures that: (1) business-relevant technology skills are in place, maintained, and uniformly accessible to all agency staff; (2) all technology staff are directed from a singular agency-wide business strategy and perspective; and, (3) technology staff are
provided consistent and uniform training opportunities based upon general technology refreshment, agency implementation of new hardware/software, or individual
performance shortcomings. The central call center/help desk concept allows a computer specialist to gain remote access or proxy to a personal computer anywhere
in the organization in order to evaluate and troubleshoot technical problemsgiving
every CRS employee immediate access to high quality technology support at their
fingertips.
FEE SERVICE ACTIVITIES

Question. What, if anything, has the Library done to identify services where it
might be appropriate to either charge a fee or raise current fees?
Answer. Where it is appropriate to charge fees, the Library does so and in some
cases has a formal process for evaluating and raising those fees.
For example, in 1997 Congress established a new procedure for setting fees for
basic services for the Copyright Office (111 Stat. 1529 (1997), codified at 17 U.S.C.
708(b)). The Copyright Office is directed to periodically study the costs of providing
its basic services. After determining the costs of those services, it is directed to consider whether the full cost recovery fee is fair, equitable, and meets the objectives
of the copyright system. If not, the fees may be adjusted to recover less than full
cost. Following this study and consideration, the Copyright Office sends Congress
a report discussing its study, conclusions, and a proposed fee schedule. This fee
schedule will be adopted unless, within 120 days of receiving the proposal, Congress
passes a law disapproving the proposed fees. The latest Copyright Office report,
with its proposed fee schedule, was sent to Congress on February 28, 2006.
Additionally, for other than basic services, the Copyright Office has the authority
to set fees by regulation. On March 28, 2006, the Copyright Office proposed a new
fee schedule for these additional services and invited public comment on this schedule. Also, a new fee service has been proposed. The comment period for these fees
closes on April 27, 2006. The Office does not expect that Congress will reject its proposed fees for basic services. Additionally, it expects to conclude its fee setting rulemaking early in May. The plan is to institute all the new fees on July 1, 2006.
Under the provisions of the Economy Act of 1932, 31 U.S.C. Sections 15351536,
the Law Library has entered into Interagency Agreements with several Executive
Branch agencies for services tailored to their specific needs requiring research and
reference products outside the routine services provided by the Library. Fees are
based on billable hours dedicated to the work performed. Other than contributions
collected under the offsetting collections authority associated with GLIN and the
interagency agreements noted above, there are no other Law Library activities that
would be suitable for charging fees.
Library Services has several revolving funds that charge a fee for services to inside and outside clients. The revolving funds operate under revolving fund law and
other fund specific legislative guidelines. As part of the Business Enterprise Work,
Library Services is reviewing all the revolving funds, including services provided
and related fees, and may be proposing changes in the coming fiscal years.

50
As other work is identified for fee-based services, the Library will propose legislative language to support those fees.
QUESTIONS SUBMITTED

BY

SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

Question. Dr. Billington, I understand that the retail shop at the Library of Congress is relocating due to the construction of the Capitol Visitor Center tunnel. What
is the new location? How do you think the relocation of the shop will affect sales?
Answer. In the summer of 2005, the Library relocated the shop to a larger location on the west side, beside the Visitor Center and close to the Capitol Visitor Center tunnel. Floor space has been increased from 1,100 square feet to 2,000 square
feet. In moving the shop, we also took the opportunity to consolidate stock rooms
and storage space has increased to 2,500 square feet. The following page includes
the floor plans and pictures of the new shop location.
The shop remains in a prominent space within the visitor area of the Jefferson
Building. Given the continued visibility and the increased floor space, we are expecting the move, in coordination with other activities, to improve sales. As we develop
our plans for the new visitor experience at the Jefferson building in the fall of 2007,
we will be coordinating the work of the Librarys visitor services and exhibitions offices to enhance our retail presence.

51

52
Question. When the CVC opens, there will undoubtedly be many more visitors
coming to the Library. Are you considering expanding your retail product based on
this increase?
Answer. The sales shop will increasingly reflect the visitor experience of the Great
Hall, the collections and art on display, the special and permanent exhibitions, and
the interactive guides throughout the Jefferson Building.
We are consolidating our product mix to focus on Library-related merchandise.
Our sales figures show that Library-related products appeal to our visitors, both on
site and online. Such Library-related products generate about 56 percent of total
revenue, approximately $610,000 in fiscal year 2005. Nineteen of our twenty most
popular items (by revenue) are library related. These top sellers generated $290,000
in sales revenues, $100,000 in profits. We will continue to grow the percentage of
inventory dedicated to proprietary Library products, increasing brand recognition,
outreach, and revenue.
Question. Dr. Billington, the Librarys fiscal year 2007 request includes a decrease
of 44 FTEs. Can you explain this decrease?
Answer. The Library is reflecting a decrease of 44 FTEs in fiscal year 2007 as
the result of authority expiring in fiscal year 2006, reduced workload, and/or adjustments needed to align staffing with available funding. Reductions include a total of
13 FTEs for positions whose authority expires in fiscal year 2006 (6 FTEs for
Culpeper, 1 FTE for Business Enterprise Project, and 6 FTEs for vacant police positions), 7 FTEs for reduced workload projected in the Copyright Office, and 24 FTEs
in CRS to align staffing with funds available.
Question. How will the Librarys transition into the digital environment affect its
current workforce? What are your plans for retraining your current workforce?
Answer. As part of our workforce transformation project, we will follow a systematic process to identify newly required skills and knowledge for our workforce as we
transition into a digital environment. Until we complete job and skills gap analyses
based on new skills and knowledge requirements, we will not know the full impact
on our workforce. Where retraining is appropriate, we will create individual development plans and training programs to retrain members of the current workforce.
Question. In fiscal year 2005, the Librarys website experienced a 14 percent increase in usage over fiscal year 2004. How are you preparing for this continuing
trend in increased web usage?
Answer. The Library of Congress website has continued to experience increases
in use both as a result of a general increase in the number of users online and as
the institution continues to add high-quality digitized material for our online audiences. The Library is projecting that the rate of increase will continue and build to
higher levels over the next few years as the American public continues to discover
and learn about the wealth of high-quality digitized materials and other content
that we offer.
The Library has begun the implementation of a web metrics program that includes new monitoring software and services that provide statistics and analytics to
assist the Library in understanding the profiles of our online users, the web content
that they access, the resulting impact on our supporting technical infrastructure,
and our continued ability to provide high quality online services. This web metrics
program and other tools that the Library uses to measure supporting infrastructure
capacity will assist the Library in forecasting future usage and in planning capacity
accordingly.
To date, the Library has met growing user demand for online content and has
supported the necessary expansion in technical infrastructure by adjusting our existing budgetary resources. We will continue to monitor these statistics and other
metrics, assess performance, and weigh alternatives for maintaining high quality
online service within existing resources if at all possible.
Question. Dr. Billington, you have requested $102 million within the Architect of
the Capitols fiscal year 2007 request. Can you prioritize the items in this request
for the members of the subcommittee?
Answer. Of the $102 million requested for the Library of Congress Buildings and
Grounds budget within the Architect of the Capitols (AOC) fiscal year 2007 request,
approximately $62 million supports 11 projects specifically requested by the Library.
Construction of the Logistics Center at Fort Meade is the Librarys highest priority within the AOC budget. This facility is urgently needed to address many critical issues, including meeting fire and safety standards and providing environmentally sound storage for Library collections. The new facility at Fort Meade is the
best overall investment for the government based on independent space and economic assessments. Choosing another site is not the solution nor will it reduce costs.
The land at Fort Meade was purchased specifically to address storage requirements
of the Legislative Branch. Leasing, buying or building storage facilities at other lo-

53
cations would undermine this master plan. The 100 acres only cost the government
one dollar. Choosing a different construction site would require millions of additional dollars for land. Upgrading current leased facilities or retrofitting other lease
buildings would only benefit the landlords and not the government. Staying in current leased facilities forces the Library to continue to pay for space that is expensive
and provides no return on investment (similar to renting vs. buying a home). Finally, we would lose the synergy of Fort Meade, which offers advantages and the
cost benefit of one security system, one transportation destination, easy access between storage facilities, and other administrative efficiencies, while providing increased capacity on Capitol Hill, and more efficient use of space on and off Capitol
Hill.
If this project is delayed, the Library will continue to incur very expensive lease
and repair costs associated with current storage materials. Savings to the government of at least $3 million annually will be lost to lease, operating and repair costs
at existing facilities. The master plan at Fort Meade is already six years behind
schedule. Further delays will raise the price tag of this project again due to inflation
and other factors and further delay, and also increase, the price tag of other buildings planned for in the master plan.
The remaining 10 Library projects are needed to maintain the Librarys buildings
and grounds, to address immediate environmental, fire and life safety issues, and
to support space modifications in response to the Librarys ever changing program
needs.
The AOC has also included their own fire and life safety projects. Past deferments
and delays have created a long list of urgently needed projects. The cost of maintenance and upgrades will continue to rise rapidly if the Library cannot stop, or at
least slow down, the rate of deterioration of its buildings and return to its approved
construction plan and schedule.
The following table lists the Librarys projects in priority order:

ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGETLIBRARY BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS
Library Priorities Fiscal Year 2007

Fiscal Year 2007

Requested

Fort Meade Book Module 3 & 4 ...........................................................................................................................

Copyright Deposit Re-Design ...............................................................................................................................
Fort Meade Logistics Warehouse .........................................................................................................................
Culpeper O&M (Facility Support) .........................................................................................................................
Fort Meade O&M (Facility Support) .....................................................................................................................
Air Handling Unit Replacement JMMB .................................................................................................................
Preservation Environmental Monitoring ...............................................................................................................
Contract Asbestos Validation TJB ........................................................................................................................
LOC Space Modifications (Rooms and Partitions) ..............................................................................................
Minor Construction ...............................................................................................................................................
Painting ................................................................................................................................................................
Kitchen Equipment ...............................................................................................................................................
DesignCourt Yard Renovation, TJB ..................................................................................................................

........................
........................
$54,200,000
2,500,000
640,000
2,890,000
80,000
100,000
650,000
990,000
100,000
40,000
75,000

Total ........................................................................................................................................................

62,265,000

Operational Support .............................................................................................................................................

39,972,000

Client Total .............................................................................................................................................

102,237,000

Question. Please provide an update on the progress of the National Audio-Visual

Conservation Center in Culpeper, VA. When will this facility be complete?
Answer. The Packard Humanities Institute (PHI) is in charge of the NAVCC construction. PHI is working closely with the Architect of the Capitol and has made
and is financing enhancements and improvements in the original plan. PHIs originally scheduled completion dates for the NAVCC were spring 2005 for the Phase
1 Collections Building and Central Plant and spring 2006 for the Phase 2 Conservation Building and Nitrate Vaults. Since then, construction delays have forced PHI
to revise slightly its master schedule. Phase 1 was turned over to the Library in
December 2005, and the Library is now moving its collections into this part of the
complex. For Phase 2, PHIs new master schedule indicates a completion and turnover date for the entire project of March 1, 2007.
Staff will be relocated in stages that are synchronized with the PHI construction
schedule. Six Library staff began working in the Phase 1 Collections Building in

54
January 2006. The majority of NAVCC staff will work in the Phase 2 Conservation
Building and will be relocated in alignment with the new construction schedule as
follows:
Summer 2006.Relocation of two or three advance staff from the Motion Picture Conservation Center (MPCC) in Dayton, Ohio to help set up the NAVCC
Film Laboratory.
December 1, 2006.Relocation of two advance technical staff from MBRS in
Washington to install cabling and initial AV system components.
March-May 2007.Relocation of Capitol Hill staff and the remainder of the
Dayton staff to Culpeper. Approximately 12 MBRS staff will remain in the
Madison Building to provide public services in the NAVCC reading room.
Question. Dr. Billington, the Library has requested funding in fiscal year 2007
$150,000for the Lincoln traveling exhibition. Please describe how the Library is
working with the federally designated Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission
on development and implementation of the exhibition.
Answer. The Library of Congress has had periodic meetings with the director and
various members of the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission for more than
a year. At these meetings, we discuss the progress of the exhibition, funding efforts,
the other venues to which the exhibition will travel, and the coordination of programming developed by the Library as well as programming developed by the Commission and its partners.
The Commission has been particularly helpful in identifying and making initial
contacts with many of the exhibitions potential venues. Further, many of the Library of Congress Lincoln exhibition advisors have been drawn from the Commissions Advisory Committee. We will continue to share information and progress reports with the Commission in planning the Library exhibition and its ancillary programs.
Question. Mr. Mulhollan, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) recently
eliminated 59 permanent job positions in 3 categories. This is the first reductionin-force (RIF) in CRSs history. Can you tell us what steps you are taking to ensure
a fair transition for these employees?
Answer. CRS has taken a number of steps to assist the staff who will be affected
by CRS decision to change the way work is performed. These include:
Staff received a full twelve months to seek and find alternative employment.
The decision was announced on September 22, 2005 and the positions will not
be eliminated until September 30, 2006.
CRS offered a voluntary early retirement option and requested of the Congress
and received authority to offer a separation incentive payment of up to the legal
maximum amount allowed of $25,000 to staff separating through retirement
with a full annuity, early retirement, or resignation. Twenty-three of the affected staff took advantage of one or both of these programs and retired on or
before January 3, 2006.
Since the end of September, CRS alone and in collaboration with the Librarys
Office of Human Resources Services, has been providing a range of retirement
and career counseling services, including:
Retirement counseling: special briefings on the details of voluntary early retirement; the application and approval process for separation incentives; a
two-day retirement seminar for staff and spouses; and individual retirement
counseling.
Career services: workshops and individual career counseling sessions; a workshop with representatives from D.C., Maryland, and Virginia career services
centers; a comprehensive three-day career-transition workshop; notification of
local recruiting events, and access to a web page with career-related information and links to numerous websites.
Employment opportunities: training on how to apply for positions using the
Librarys automated hiring system; notification of all vacancy announcements
within CRS; and notification of potential vacancies of interest in the Library.
Reduction-in-force (RIF) briefing: a special briefing with a RIF expert on RIF
general procedures.
Further, the Library is seeking approval of new and permanent authority that
will grant any Library of Congress employee who is the subject of a formal RIF
with job placement rights with agencies in the Executive Branch. Heretofore,
Library of Congress staff displaced through agency downsizing or reengineering
had no federal re-employment rights regardless of their grade, job series, or federal tenure. This authority would grant Library of Congress employees who receive a RIF notice priority status for selection into competitive-service positions
in the executive branch. Such authority is currently granted to executive branch
employees who are RIFed from executive branch positions. This authority would

55
place Library of Congress employees behind any affected employees in an agency undergoing a RIF in selection priority but ahead of applicants who have no
federal service. Adopting this provision would give the Librarys employees a
broader potential employment base and help employees who wish to continue
their public-service careers beyond the Library of Congress.
Question. Where in your fiscal year 2007 budget have you accounted for the possibility of paying severance pay to these employees?
Answer. First, we need to add that one additional individual within the CRS affected staff has been offered a position outside of the Librarybringing the number
of remaining employees down to 30. The Library is committed to funding any fiscal
liability associated with the separation of the remaining 30 affected CRS staff; however, the question assumes that all severance pay will be borne by CRS which is
unlikely. Further, the specific treatment of severance pay in the Librarys budget
is premature.
Projecting the amount of severance pay which will actually be paid in fiscal year
2007 is a complicated process. It involves taking into account several variable outcomes: forecasting the number of staff that who accept Voluntary Early Retirement
(VERA) and/or the Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP); the number of
staff who are successful in competing for vacant positions in CRS, the Library, other
federal agencies, or in the private sector; and ultimate placement of affected staff
into vacant positions in the Library or elsewhere in the Federal government under
a reduction-in-force action.
Of the 30 who remain on the CRS payroll at this time, one is currently eligible
for full retirement and eight others are or will be eligible for early retirement on
September 30. In accordance with the Federal Code of Regulations, an employee
separated by a reduction-in force (RIF) action is ineligible for a severance entitlement if they are eligible to receive an immediate annuity from a federal retirement
system. For these nine staff, CRS will be liable only for terminal leave payments,
estimated at about $49,000.
The Librarys general policy is to retain and to assign to other positions, insofar
as may be possible . . . staff members whose positions are abolished. This may
occur by assigning staff to vacant positions in other organizations within the Library, or by an employee affected by a RIF exercising their bumping rights to
claim a position held by someone with less retention preference. It is conceivable
that bumping could eventually force an involuntary separation of an employee in
another Library Service Unit, in which case, the severance payments would not be
reflected in the CRS budget. Further, given that the individual who is ultimately
separated has the least seniority, the Librarys fiscal liability would be reduced because the severance entitlement computation is based upon years of service and age.
Should an affected employee decline a reasonable offer to be reassigned into another
Library position, that employee forfeits his/her claim to receive severance pay. The
severance entitlement terminates if/when an individual becomes employed under a
qualifying appointment with the federal government or the government of the District of Columbia.
As stated by both the Librarian and the CRS Director, it is the hope of the institution that all of the affected staff will find alternative employment or be placed into
vacant positions within the Library. If a formal RIF becomes necessary and the
processes governing it are implemented, the Library of Congress has a good track
record for placing employees and is hopeful that this will again be the case.
As stated elsewhere in these responses, the Library is seeking two new administrative provisions that would grant competitive status to Library staff who have
completed their probationary period and places displaced Library staff on equal footing with Executive branch employees by making these employees eligible for vacant
Executive Branch positions. These new provisions would expand options for Library
staff facing a RIF and offers all Library employees additional opportunities for jobs
and career growth in public service. As staff are successfully placed within the Library or with other federal agencies, the federal financial liability for severance pay
decreases accordingly and could be eliminated altogether.
Question. Have you provided any Members of Congress, Congressional committees, or CRS staff copies of the studies or any other written analysis which led you
to decide that 59 permanent positions should be eliminated by September 30, 2006?
If not, members of this subcommittee would like to see copies of these studies.
Answer. A CRS Directors Report issued on November 3, 2005 provides a detailed analysis of the decision to eliminate the production support, technical support
assistant, and audio-visual staff. That report was provided to selected members of
the metropolitan area delegation, members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and the Congressional Asian Pacific Caucus. This report and extensive additional information also were provided to the House Adminis-

56
tration Committee and key staff on the Librarys oversight committees. The report
was also made available to all CRS staff members on the CRS staff web page. The
Directors Report of November 3, 2005 follows.
DIRECTORS REPORTFISCAL YEAR 2006 STAFFING CHANGES, NOVEMBER 3, 2005
SUMMARY

The Director of the Congressional Research Service (CRS) is vested by the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 with responsibility to assure the appropriate mix
of employees and consultants to develop and maintain the information and research
capability that he deems necessary to perform the statutory mission of the Service
to provide to the Congress, throughout the legislative process, comprehensive and
reliable legislative research, analysis, and information services that are timely, objective, non-partisan, and confidential. The Director is also authorized to establish
and change, from time to time, as he considers advisable, within the Congressional
Research Service, such research and reference divisions or other organizational
units, or both, as he considers necessary . . . From the statute, it is clear that the
Director is obligated to undertake such reorganizations and staffing adjustments as
he considers necessary to provide efficiently and effectively the products and services upon which Members and committees rely and have come to expect. The staffing adjustments announced recently fall squarely within this obligation. The Congress is facing many global and domestic financial challenges and has explicitly
stated that Legislative Branch agency heads are expected to look within to find
ways to streamline operations and pare all unnecessary duplication and costs that
are not critical to achieving core business goals and objectives.
The following key points are discussed in the report.
The Decision
The Congressional Research Service will eliminate the production support, technical support assistant, and audio visual positions on September 30, 2006. This action affects 59 staff in a total workforce of nearly 700. The decision is based on a
series of management reviews and evaluations of needed functions and activities
which have been overtaken by technological advances. CRS will redirect the resources, currently committed to supporting these staff, to obtain new support capacities critical to service to the Congress.
Of the 59 staff, 38 are production coordinators or assistants (of which two are receptionists), 18 are technical support assistants, and three are in audio-visual support. The average compensation, including salary and benefits, for these staff is
$75,101 per annum; the average salary without benefits is $60,636. Over one-half
of these staff, 33, are either eligible for full voluntary retirement or voluntary early
retirement and the maximum $25,000 separation incentive. Sixteen are not eligible
to retire but are eligible for the maximum $25,000 separation incentive. The average
separation incentive for these 16 staff is $16,906.
Currently 32.3 percent of CRS total permanent workforce of 694 staff is minority.
If all of the affected staff were to separate from CRS and no other attrition or hires
were to take place (total staff reduced to 635), the total minority population would
be 28.8 percent. The proportion of Asian Americans would increase from 4.5 percent
to 4.7 percent; Native Americans would increase from .7 percent to .8 percent; Hispanics would remain the same; and the proportion of African Americans would decrease from 24.6 percent to 20.9 percent. It must be noted that these projections of
course do not reflect new hires or the consequences of other attrition.
CRS is offering the 59 affected staff a variety of resources to assist in their planning, including an early retirement option, separation incentive of up to $25,000, retirement counseling, career and job counseling, and retention in their current positions through September, 2006.
CRS, as a result of management reviews and evaluations, has and continues to
create new positions to meet critical work needs of the Service. Affected staff may
apply for these positions through an open and competitive process.
Background
In fiscal years 2005 and 2006, the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations issued clear directives to all Legislative Branch agencies to maintain rigorous
and disciplined business practices in agency operations, to contain costs, to establish
strong agency-performance goals, and to report to the Congress on all of these activities. CRS based the fiscal year 2006 staffing decisions upon analytic and objective evaluations of how best to align resources to current, critical work needs.
The final fiscal year 2005 and 2006 appropriations for CRS require the agency to
downsize permanently by the equivalent of about 30 full time equivalents (FTEs),

57
thereby reducing total FTEs from 729 to 700. Given the confluence of several factors, including a higher average grade level (higher level of expertise) and the continuing trend of increased costs for staff benefits (Federal Employee Retirement System benefits average 28 percent per employee versus an average of 13 percent per
employee under Civil Service Retirement System), CRS requested in fiscal years
2005 and 2006 additional funds, $2.7 million and $3.6 million respectively, to compensate for funding shortfalls in its budget base. Congress did not fund the request
in fiscal year 2005 and provided $500,000 toward this shortfall in 2006. CRS must
be vigilant to maintain the necessary analytic strength to support the Congress, and
it must maintain an infrastructure that meets and keeps pace with the Congress
evolving needs. The fiscal year 2006 staffing decisions are part of the Services overall strategy to accommodate a downsized CRS within the framework of a fiscally
constrained budget.
CRS has taken action and implemented adjustments over the last five years to
ensure that its resources are properly aligned with congressional needs. These adjustments resulted in the elimination and restructuring of organizational units; the
elimination, downgrading, and creation of positions; and the use of contractors to
undertake specific work needs. CRS based each adjustment upon formal assessments of the impact of new technologies on the work; the existing content, structure
and processes of the work performed; the skills and abilities needed to undertake
the work; and in some cases, consideration to outsource the work based upon a cost
and feasibility analysis. Examples of recent assessments follow:
1. The role of information professionals/librarians within CRS. The result of
this study led to the elimination of a CRS office and a division (Office of Information Resources Management and Information Research Division) and the creation of one smaller, integrated division, the Knowledge Services Group. The
work of librarians, as well as all paralegal, technical information, and most library technician staff, throughout the Service was redefined and adjusted. Positions were created to undertake new functions, revisions were made to other positions to align the work directly to the new organization, some positions were
eliminated, and some activities were contracted out. During the assessment, no
new permanent hires were made into positions under review. Today, the new,
more efficient, organization consists of 54 fewer staff performing the worka
staff reduction from 190 to 136.
2. Examination of support positions within three infrastructure offices. Three
separate studies evaluated the functions supporting CRS formal programs and
seminars in the Legislative Relations Office and of administrative functions
within the Offices of Finance and Administration and Workforce Development.
These studies resulted in CRS creating and competitively filling new positions
at lower grade levels. For example, program aide positions were redesignated
at a GS11 level rather than GS13. Administrative support grade levels within
the Offices were reduced, on average, from GS11 to GS7.
3. Integration of CRS economists and scientists with other policy research disciplines. This study led to the elimination of two research divisions (Economics
and Science Policy), the integration of the economists and scientists into the
other policy divisions, the elimination of seven senior level research coordination positions, and the return of five senior level specialists to full time research.
4. Outsourcing of selected support functions. Other functional assessments resulted in expanded outsourcing of CRS support activities, including mail and
courier service, technical troubleshooting (help desk and user support), receptionist duties, and copy center operations.
INTRODUCTION

The Director of the Congressional Research Service is vested by the Legislative

Reorganization Act of 1970 with responsibility to assure the appropriate mix of employees and consultants to develop and maintain the information and research capability that he deems necessary to perform the statutory mission of the Serviceto
provide to the Congress, throughout the legislative process, comprehensive and reliable legislative research, analysis, and information services that are timely, objective, non-partisan, and confidential. The Director is also authorized to establish and
change, from time to time, as he considers advisable, within the Congressional Research Service, such research and reference divisions or other organizational units,
or both, as he considers necessary . . . 1 From the statute, it is clear that the Di12

U.S.C. 166 (d, f).

58
rector is obligated to undertake such reorganizations and staffing adjustments as he
considers necessary to provide efficiently and effectively the products and services
upon which Members and committees rely and have come to expect. The staffing
adjustments announced recently fall squarely within this obligation. The Congress
is facing many global and domestic financial challenges and has explicitly stated
that Legislative Branch agency heads are expected to look within to find ways to
streamline operations and pare all unnecessary duplication and costs that are not
critical to achieving core business goals and objectives.
CURRENT CONDITIONS RELEVANT TO STAFFING DECISION

Congressional Directives and the CRS Budget

In fiscal years 2005 and 2006, the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations issued clear directives to all Legislative Branch agencies to maintain rigorous
and disciplined business practices in agency operations, cost containment, and
achievement of agency-performance objectives. The use of sound business practices
has been, and will continue to be, the way CRS is managed. The fiscal year 2006
enacted budget places financial constraints on CRS operations and reinforces Congress expectation that CRS contain costs while sustaining a highly productive, high
performing agency. Appendix A provides excerpts from the committee reports.
Eighty-eight percent of the CRS budget, now just over $100 million, is earmarked
for the salary and benefits costs of its workforce. Over the past ten years, the
Services annual adjustments provided through the budget process have not kept
pace with the rapidly increasing costs of sustaining CRS workforce, due to several
factors:
a gradual and necessary shift to more highly skilled expertise in the CRS workforce composition to support the Congress in increasingly complex policy areas
(e.g., combating terrorism, assimilating information technologies in industry,
commerce and governments, and the implications of an aging population). In
the period from fiscal year 1995 to the present, the average grade level of a CRS
hire has increased from GS7, Step 9 to GS13, Step 9;
a shift in the proportion of the workforce participating in the Federal Employee
Retirement System, for which the average employer-paid benefits rate of 28 percent is twice that of a Civil Service Retirement System employee making the
same salary (with an average employer-paid benefits rate of 13 percent); 2
the adverse impact of annual rescissions in which losses are not recovered in
subsequent years; and
the fact that the President has implemented actual pay raises that are higher
than those provided in the Legislative Branch bills in nine of the last ten years.
While each of these factors would produce a marginal impact in the course of a
single year, the cumulative and combined impact of all of them has generated a
funding gap of nearly $4 million over the course of ten years.
In fiscal years 2005 and 2006, CRS requested a one-time budget base adjustment
($2.7 to $3.6 million respectively) catch-up, that would have provided the funding
needed to recover lost cost increases (purchasing power) and to rebuild the CRS
workforce to the 729 full time equivalent (FTE) ceiling authorized by the Congress.
In both years CRS informed the Congress that without the additional funding, the
Services workforce would necessarily be drawn down to a level of about 700 FTEs,
causing a serious impact on its ability to sustain the research capacity required to
fulfill its mission and meet the needs of the Congress.3 The Congress did not support the request in fiscal year 2005, and in fiscal year 2006 authorized $500,000 to2 The Federal Employees Retirement System Act of 1986 (Public Law 99335) requires all federal employees initially hired into permanent positions after 1983 to be covered by the Federal
Employees Retirement System (FERS). Federal employees hired before 1984 are covered by the
Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) unless they elected to switch to FERS during open
seasons held in 1987 and 1998. For CSRS participants, the total employer-paid benefits per
employee averages about 13 percent of the base pay. For staff participating in FERS, the employer-paid benefits cost averages about 28 percent of the base paydue in large part to the
Thrift Savings Plan matching component of FERSmaking FERS significantly more expensive
to the employing agency. As the older CSRS staff retire and the proportion of the workforce covered by FERS increases, the agency overhead costs related to staff benefits increases.
3 Testimony of Daniel P. Mulhollan, Director, Congressional Research Service, U.S. Congress,
House, Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations for 2005, hearing,
108th Cong., 2d sess., (Washington: GPO, 2004), p. 274; and testimony of Daniel P. Mulhollan,
Director, Congressional Research Service, U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Appropriations,
Legislative Branch Appropriations for 2006, hearing, 109th Cong., 1st sess., (Washington: GPO,
2005), p. 593.

59
wards this shortfall. CRS can no longer sustain a capacity of 729 full-time equivalent employees.
CRS Management Initiatives
Well before the issuance of fiscal year 2005 and 2006 report language from the
House and Senate (see Appendix A), and with the goal of maintaining a cost-effective organization, CRS had been undertaking systematic assessments to identify
current and future resource needs and to identify functions that should be eliminated or re-engineered due to technological advancements, internal work processes
and congressional needs. Listed below are some of the more significant management
initiatives CRS has instituted and the results of these initiatives. CRS has:
Developed and implemented an annual staffing assessment to determine four
key factors: (1) anticipated and known attrition, (2) anticipated legislative
issues, (3) likely gaps in the Services capacity to meet the needs of Congress,
and (4) current and future staffing needs. This assessment forms the basis for
the Services annual hiring plan and is a critical activity since staff salaries and
benefits comprise 88 percent of the CRS budget.
Implemented an annual zero scrub of the 12 percent of the CRS budget devoted to nonpersonnel costs to validate each planned expenditure and to identify
expenditures that should either be considered for reduction or elimination, or
adjusted upwards to meet agency needs;
Created a new performance assessment system for senior-level managers; and
Instituted annual program and activity reviews to assess the efficiencies and effectiveness of current operations, as well as identify potential need to re-engineer or realign resources.
Resulting actionsorganizational and staff realignments:
The role of information professionals/librarians within CRS. The result of a two
year study led to the elimination of a CRS office and a division (Office of Information Resources Management and Information Research Division) and the creation of one smaller, integrated division, the Knowledge Services Group. The
work of librarians, as well as all paralegal, technical information, and most library technician staff, throughout the Service was redefined and adjusted. Positions were created to undertake new functions, revisions were made to other positions to align the work directly to the new organization; some positions were
eliminated; and some activities were contracted out. During the assessment no
new permanent hires were made into positions under review. Today, the new,
more efficient, organization contains 54 fewer staff to perform the work, a reduction from 190 to 136 staff members.
Examination of support positions within three infrastructure offices. Three separate studies evaluated the functions supporting formal CRS programs and seminars in the Legislative Relations Office and of administrative functions within
the Offices of Finance and Administration and Workforce Development. The result of these studies led CRS to create and competitively fill new positions at
lower grade levels. For example, program aide positions were redesignated at
a GS11 level rather than GS13. Administrative support grade levels within
the Offices were reduced on average from GS11 to GS7.
Integration of CRS economists and scientists with other policy research disciplines. This study led to the elimination of two research divisions (Economics
and Science Policy), the integration of the economists and scientists into the
other policy divisions, the elimination of seven senior level research coordination positions, and the return of five senior level specialists to full time research.
Resulting actionsactivities and services eliminated:
Eliminated two product linesInfo Packs and Electronic Briefing Books;
Closed two research centerslocated in the Longworth and Ford House office
buildings;
Eliminated indexing of committee prints;
Shifted CRS product distribution from a primarily paper-based inventory to primarily web-based, on-demand printing;
Eliminated the public policy literature file and service;
Closed one copy center; and
Eliminated and consolidated division libraries.
Resulting actionsactivities and services outsourced:
Mail and messenger services;
Copy center operations;
Receptionist functions;
Selected technology support; and
Selected library technical support.

60
The most recently completed 2005 program and activity reviews include an assessment of the functions currently performed by CRS production support staff,
technical support assistants, and audio-visual staff. These assessments formed the
basis for the actions underway in these support activities. Studies to assess other
activities and functions are in progress.
PRODUCTION SUPPORT, TECHNICAL SUPPORT ASSISTANT, AND AUDIO-VISUAL FUNCTIONS

Studies and Findings

Data for these 2005 studies came from a variety of sources, including multiple discussions with potentially affected staff; a thorough review of all relevant position
functions; initial and subsequent meetings with each assistant director and deputy
assistant director, some associate directors, and a sample of analysts, attorneys, editors, and section heads. Information was collected using structured questions and
analyses of documents provided by CRS staff.4
Aware of the changing functions needed to support its analytic work, CRS last
filled a primary production support position in 1997; a technical support assistant
position in 1999; and an audio-visual position in 1991. The studies undertaken in
2005 confirmed that the functions identified and performed by staff in these positions, while appropriate and warranted ten years ago when first created, have been
overtaken by advances in technology and desktop computing.
The in-depth reviews of the production-support and technical-support assistant
functions confirmed that advances in technology have changed both the expectations
staff have with regard to the capacity and power of their desktop computing capabilities and ease of using these technologies in their day-to-day work. Ten years ago,
when CRS created the technical support assistant positions, the software and operating systems used by the Service required a hands-on presence by supporting staff,
leading to the necessity of investing in a significant number of technical support positions. For example, in the past operating systems and software applications were
manually installed machine by machine. Todays computing environment is supported centrally via push technology that enables sophisticated software packages
and upgrades to be loaded on more than 700 computers from a single, central location within a few minutes. Such technology also allows for a computer specialist to
gain remote access to or proxy into a computer in order to evaluate and troubleshoot technical problems directly with the user.
In addition, more than one-third of CRS current analytic staff has been hired in
the last five to six years. They are more technologically adroit, routinely producing
final products at their desktops. And as a result, the majority of CRS analysts no
longer rely on the production staff to help with product creation. Further, CRS is
moving away from providing the Congress with paper copies of reports to a primarily web-based delivery system, with products prepared in both PDF and HTML.
Software and other technology advances have simplified product delivery and incorporated most of the formatting directly in the software on the authors desk. The
CRS Electronic Research Products Office is responsible for preparing CRS written
products for final congressional publication and dissemination, hence this function
is not undertaken by the individual analyst or production support coordinator or assistant.
Direct congressional demand for audio-visual products has been declining for more
than ten years. And the need by CRS analysts for audio-visual support is uneven
calling into question the need to retain a separate, in-house staff for this purpose.
Since the functions needed to support effectively and efficiently the administrative, product-preparation, and technology assistance activities are significantly different from what is currently being performed, the Director decided to eliminate the
current positions and redirect these resources to fulfilling newly identified support
needs. In order to accommodate remaining audio-visual needs the Service is exploring outsourcing options. Appendix B provides additional information on the studies.

4 In 2000, a preliminary review of the functions carried out by the CRS production staff suggested that technological advances in word processing were beginning to have implications for
the ability to sustain staff resources devoted to supporting word processing activities. While determining the long-term consequences of these advances on CRS staffing levels, the Service did
not fill any production coordinator or assistant positions thus, in effect, implementing a freeze
on these positions until further study could be undertaken.

61
AFFECTED STAFF

Positions Affected
Production support and receptionist duties 5: The 38 individuals affected by this
decision are in positions at grade levels GS4 to GS11. With the exception of two
receptionists, the principal functions of the current production staff include:
supporting research analysts throughout the entire product preparation process
to include the creation, formatting, styling, editing and appearance of written
documents, and in the development of graphics and tables when needed;
creating macros, templates and other guides to use in supporting research analysts as they prepare their written products;
meeting the needs of division authors with respect to design, format and presentation of written products;
working with division management to ensure uniformity of style and format for
division research products consistent with Service-wide standards; and
delivering final products to the CRS Review Office and the Electronic Research
Products Office.
Technical Support: The 18 individuals affected by this decision are in positions
at the GS12 grade level. The principal functions of the current positions include:
analyzing operations with requirements that can be met through limited
customization of existing hardware components and/or software packages;
installing standard and specialized software on individual computers within a
division or office;
keeping systems fully operational, integrated with other CRS systems, and current with new developments in technology; and
serving as trouble shooter for various computer problems encountered by division/office staff.
Audio-visual support: The three individuals affected by this decision in the audiovisual specialist/officer position are at the GS12 and GS13 grade levels. Highlights of their current functions include taping and editing scheduled programs and
creating videos of a small number of CRS experts who have prepared educational
presentations such as Supreme Court nominations and congressional procedures.
Salaries and Compensation
The total projected fiscal year 2006 cost for the 59 staff who are affected by this
decision is $4,430,962. Salaries and benefits for individual staff range from $35,141
to a high of $115,678the average being $75,101. Further analysis of the data indicates that the salaries (excluding benefits) for the affected staff range from $26,989
to $99,223, with an average salary of $60,636. The median salary of these staff is
$52,082; eight staff earn less than $50,000 per year. Appendix C includes a more
detailed display of the salaries and benefits for the affected staff.
Retirement Eligibility
CRS is offering a voluntary early retirement option and separation incentive payment 6 to the affected staff. CRS sought these options based on the following information about the 59 affected staff:
33 of the affected staff are either eligible for full voluntary retirement or voluntary early retirement and are eligible to receive the maximum $25,000 separation incentive (16 for full retirement and 17 for early retirement);
16 are not eligible to retire but are eligible for the maximum $25,000 separation
incentive;
Nine who are not eligible to retire, are eligible for separation incentive payments ranging between $3,434 to $21,943, at an average of $16,906; and
One staff member, a receptionist, is not eligible for a separation incentive because he has not fulfilled the requirement of three years employment with the
government.
Appendix C also includes data on the retirement eligibility of affected staff.
Diversity
A consequence of the 2006 staffing decisions is its potential impact on the Services workforce diversity profile. Table 1 below demonstrates that if all of the affected staff were to separate from the CRS workforce (data as of September 15,
5 Receptionist functions have been outsourced, and as a result the two remaining receptionists
in the Service are included as part of these staffing changes.
6 CRS has the authority to grant the separation incentive payment to a maximum of 50 staff.
Up to 10 of these payments may be granted to staff outside of these affected positionsthe staff
of the Knowledge Services Group. There is no limit, however, on the number of affected staff
who can take advantage of the voluntary early retirement option.

62
2005), with no other attrition or hires, the minority population of the CRS workforce
would represent 28.8 percent rather than 32.3 percent of total staff. This computation, while accurate, may overstate the implication of the reduction on minority
staff. There is no way to predict the impact other attrition might have on the Services workforce composition or the impact of planned 2006 hires. Further, given that
16 of these staff are currently eligible for full voluntary retirement, it is possible
that many of these staff would have retired during this period, regardless of the reengineering efforts underway.
If no other element of our current profile changed, the elimination of these positions would result in an increase in the proportion of Asian Americans in the total
workforce from 4.5 percent to 4.7 percent; the proportion of Native Americans would
increase from .7 percent to .8 percent; Hispanics would remain the same, at 2.4 percent; while the proportion of African Americans would decrease from 24.6 percent
to 20.9 percent.

TABLE 1.DIVERSITY COMPOSITION OF THE CRS STAFF

Total CRS Perm/Ind Workforce
Composition as of 9/15/05
Number

Percent

Projected CRS Perm/Ind Workforce Composition as of 10/1/

06
Number

Percent

Female ..........................................................................................
Male ..............................................................................................

357
337

51.4
48.6

317
318

49.9
50.1

Total ................................................................................

694

100.0

635

100.0

Minority composition .....................................................................

Nat Am/Alaskan ...................................................................
Asian American ....................................................................
African American .................................................................
Hispanic ...............................................................................
Non-Minority ..................................................................................

224
5
31
171
17
470

32.3
0.7
4.5
24.6
2.4
67.7

183
5
30
133
15
452

28.8
0.8
4.7
20.9
2.4
71.2

Total ................................................................................

694

100.0

635

100.0

Appendix D provides the diversity composition of the affected staff.

Services to Affected Staff
CRS is offering a variety of resources to staff to assist them in their decision making and transition. CRS requested of the Congress and received authority to offer
a separation incentive payment of up to $25,000 to staff separating through retirement with a full annuity, early retirement, or resignation. CRS is granting staff one
full year to find alternative employment and offering numerous specialized and individual services to help them achieve that objective, including job and retirement
counseling. Appendix E provides a detailed list of the services and resources being
offered to the 59 affected staff.
It is CRS hope that these measures will eliminate the need to undertake a reduction-in-force (RIF) in September of 2006. However, after September 2006, staff who
remain in the positions targeted for elimination will be subject to RIF procedures.
NEW POSITIONS

CRS is redirecting its resources to acquire new and different support capacities
generated by technological changes and new work processes. CRS will be competitively filling these new support positions in the near future. There will be fewer positions and some will be classified and filled at lower grade levels.
The new positions are summarized below. A description of existing positions is included to provide a context for the new capacities. The language used to describe
the duties of these positions is primarily derived from the relevant, official position
descriptions.
Administrative Support Positions
GS8 Senior Production Assistant (current)
Performs duties related to the preparation of various written products that CRS
produces for the Congress to include Reports, Issue Briefs and memoranda. Supports research analysts throughout the entire production process to include the creation, formatting, styling, editing and appearance of written documents and in the

63
development of graphics and tables when needed. Is responsible for product delivery
and for working with the Electronic Research Products Office (ERPO) to finalize
products, making changes as needed following the review of the ERPO editors or
the CRS Review Office. May use computer on-line systems to retrieve information
in support of the researchers written products.
GS7 Administrative Support Assistant (new)
Performs support functions related to the administrative operations of the division. Implements and maintains division-wide administrative control systems to include confidential division files, correspondence tracking and the disposition of
records. Ensures that division staff at all levels are fully informed on CRS and Library administrative practices, procedures and other administrative requirements.
Initiates the development of new and revised administrative policies and procedures
for the division as appropriate. Works with the supervisor to ensure that division
managers and staff requests for training and travel are processed in an accurate
and timely manner and tracks the progress of these requests through to approval.
Uses appropriate software applications to generate administrative documents and
forms. Serves as the central point of contact for all division staff regarding questions
and issues related to the web- based time and attendance system.
GS11 Senior Production/Administrative Coordinator (current)
Oversees the function that supports the preparation of CRS written products including managing the production work-flow, clearing products for style, format, and
editorial accuracy, maintaining records of the location of research products, transmitting written products to the CRS Review Office and the Electronic Research
Products Office and other duties related to the support of the research production/
preparation function in the division. Provides training and trouble-shooting service
for the senior production assistants and other support staff in the division. Helps
to create macros, templates and other guides for the support staff to use in supporting research analysts as they prepare their written products. Advises the support staff on how to meet the needs of division authors with respect to design, format and presentation of written products. Works with division management to ensure uniformity of style and format for division research products consistent with
Service-wide standards.
GS11 Supervisory Administrative Coordinator (new)
Advises the head of the division (the assistant director) on the administrative
needs and requirements of the division, serves as the principal point of contact for
the division, and supervises the work of administrative and clerical division staff.
Coordinates with senior CRS and Library managers and with subordinate offices to
communicate and interpret administrative/management assignments, recommend
appropriate action or suggest alternative approaches, and follow up as appropriate
to ensure proper and timely response to assignments. Manages the divisions official
correspondence and a wide variety of correspondence from within and outside the
agency. Manages the assistant directors calendar and initiates contacts and oversees logistical planning and preparation for the assistant directors meetings. Undertakes special administrative projects or management studies either individually or
as a participant on task forces or working groups. Monitors and evaluates the activities of contractors assigned to perform clerical activities for the division.
Technical Support Positions
GS12 Senior Technical Support Assistant (current)
Provides de-centralized technical support to divisions and offices. Independently
analyzes operations with requirements that can be met through limited
customization of existing hardware components and software packages. Installs
standard and specialized software. Independently designs, develops, documents, and
manages systems that require important but limited customization. Keeps such systems fully operational, integrated with other CRS systems, and current with new
developments in technology. Creates documentation for end users of systems; typically the entire staff of a division or office. Serves as trouble shooter for various
computer problems encountered by division/office staff. Prepares documentation and
establishes procedures to assist other technical support assistants to diagnose and
solve trouble calls in a number of technical areas supported by the CRS Technology
Office. Develops and delivers training courses for groups of 1012.
GS11 Technical Writer-Editor (new)
Plans, writes, and edits a variety of technical documents, including guidelines, reference materials, fact sheets, website entries, and standard operating procedures;
ensures accuracy, consistency, format, completeness, spelling, punctuation, capital-

64
ization, and syntax. Produces technical material for a variety of offices, and determines the adequacy of materials prepared by others. Utilizes substantial subject
matter knowledge to interpret technical material for a variety of audiences.
GS14 Information Technology SpecialistINFOSEC (new)
Serves as a technical authority and assists in planning, directing, and coordinating the implementation and execution of approved security policies, programs,
and services related to Information Technology (IT) systems. Oversees or coordinates the preparation of security testing and implementation plans. Plans and investigates mission-critical cybersecurity violations that affect the integrity of an
agency-wide IT infrastructure, and develops long-range plans for IT security systems. Leads the implementation of security programs for the Service designed to anticipate, assess, and minimize system vulnerabilities. Conducts difficult and sensitive computer forensic investigations, and ensures the integration of IT programs
and services.
GS7 Office Equipment Administrator (new)
Monitors the CRS copy centers, determining whether print jobs require assistance
to be completed; tracks work produced for accuracy, quality, and production timeliness; and analyzes system down-time. Monitors CRS copiers and other office equipment, and identifies obvious trends, or deviations that could impact services provided. Provides support and assists in the planning, review, and reporting of data/
statistical results of programs and project studies, and compiles statistical data to
assist with the overall evaluation and selection of equipment.
Status of New Positions
CRS posted the vacancy announcements for the supervisory administrative coordinator positions on October 18, 2005 and the administrative support assistant positions on October 24, 2005. CRS anticipates that vacancy announcements for the
other three technical positions will open by the end of November.
CRS is also creating quality assurance editor and publication-support positions to
assist with the dissemination of CRS products to the Congress. Work on these positions are underway. Vacancy announcements for these positions may be open by
late-November.
Affected staff may apply for these new positions under the Library of Congress
merit selection process.
FISCAL YEAR 2006 HIRES

In addition to filling positions in the new support areas described above, CRS will
continue hiring staff to sustain analytic capacity and prepare for the succession of
senior leadership. While the total CRS workforce is smaller today than in 1999, the
proportion of analytic staff compared to the total workforce has increased. As of September 15, 2005, CRS analytic capacity represents 333 permanent, full time staff
members (47.9 percent) of a total staff of 694 compared to 287 permanent, full-time
staff members (40.8 percent) of a total staff of 703 in fiscal year 1999. The 2006
staffing decisions were made in the context of honoring the congressionally supported succession plan of the late 1990s and maintaining a Service-wide infrastructure in a manner that adequately addresses analytic capacity and research needs.
In fiscal year 2006, unless faced with an across-the-board rescission, the Service
anticipates hiring four attorneys in American Law; eight analysts in Domestic Social
Policy; six analysts in Foreign Affairs, Defense and Trade; four analysts in Government and Finance; and six analysts in Resources, Science and Industry. Consistent
with succession planning, CRS will be filling positions for a deputy associate director for finance and a deputy associate director for congressional affairs. The Service
will continue to review the current section head duties as part of CRS ongoing succession planning.
CONCLUSION

CRS is making every effort to manage its resources so as to perform efficiently

and effectively its statutory mission of service to the Congress, while at the same
time coping with the constrained Legislative Branch budget that has prevailed in
recent years. The Service has been directed by the Congress to find ways to streamline its operations, eliminate unnecessary duplication, explore options for
outsourcing appropriate functions, and to align resources in a cost-effective manner
while achieving performance goals that meet congressional needs.
The decisions outlined in this report were made with full recognition of and appreciation for the contributions made by affected CRS staff, and with much attention
focused on finding ways to mitigate the impact on those employees. As described,

65
CRS is providing time for the affected staff to make personal decisions by delaying
implementation for a full year. CRS also has obtained from the Congress authority
to offer separation incentive payments and approval from the Office of Personnel
Management to offer a voluntary early retirement option. The Service also is applying resources through September 2006 to assist staff during the phase out of their
positions by offering them services which include: career counseling, job search assistance, and retirement counseling.
In summary, obligations for good stewardship have led the Service to make some
very difficult decisions. CRS has done so in keeping with recent congressional directives and budget decisions and only after a thorough examination of all available
options and proper attention to the implications for staff.
APPENDIX A: EXCERPTS FROM THE FISCAL YEARS 2005 AND 2006 REPORTS
HOUSE AND SENATE COMMITTEES ON APPROPRIATIONS

OF THE

Fiscal Year 2005

From U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2005, report to accompany H.R. 4755, 108th Cong., 2d sess., H. Rept.
108577 (Washington: GPO, 2005). Excerpts:
Legislative Branch Wide Matters
Budget requests.The Committee wants to underscore the fact that with record
deficits, a war on terrorism, and troops on the ground in Afghanistan and Iraq, the
budget requests from the agencies of the Legislative Branch cannot continue to be
presented with requested increases as high as 50 percent. The Committee expects
that future budget submissions will take into consideration the overall budget constraints placed on the entire Federal budget and that more reasonable budget requests will be forthcoming in future years. (p. 4)
Potential for savings.. . . The Committee directs the General Accounting Office
(GAO) to work closely with the head of each Legislative Branch entity to: (1) identify opportunities that will streamline the agency organization and eliminate organizational layers; (2) outsource operations that will result in providing higher quality
and less costly services; (3) utilize existing technology to enhance operational efficiency; (4) implement management changes, which will increase efficiency and effectiveness of agency operations; and (5) where applicable apply the Federal Activities
Inventory Reform Act, and Chief Financial Officers Act, and the Government
Performance and Results Act. The committee directs that the GAO report its findings, including recommendations for changes, to the Committee on Appropriations
of the House and Senate by January 10, 2005. Each agency of the Legislative
Branch should be prepared to discuss recommended changes during the fiscal year
2006 appropriation hearing cycle. (pp. 45)
Outsourcing.. . . the Committee directs that each agency of the Legislative
Branch examine potential outsourcing opportunities of the following areas: Information management operations and site management; building facilities and grounds
management and operations; human resources management and operations; training functions; vehicle maintenance and management; physical security; financial operations; and printing operations. Each agency is expected to not only examine the
areas outlined, but also examine other activities and functions that are unique to
each agency to determine if further outsourcing opportunities exist. (p. 5)
Congressional Research Service
The Committee is concerned with the potential for duplication of support activities
between the Congressional Research Service Unit and the Library of Congress, Salaries and Expenses account. The Committee funds centralized support organizations
such as Information Technology Services, Human Resources Services, Office of the
Chief Financial Officer, and Integrated Support Services to provide Library-wide
support services, which helps to reduce duplicate systems and processes throughout
the Library accounts. Of particular note, in this years budget request, the Library
is requesting in two separate accounts funding for the Alternate Computer Facility
and XML capabilities which may reflect duplication of support services. The Committee directs that the Library of Congress conduct a study of such functions as information technology, human resources, financial services, space management, and
other support functions to determine whether any duplicate or overlapping activities
exist. The findings of the study are to be provided to the Committee on Appropriations of the House and Senate prior to the fiscal year 2006 budget submission and
any budgetary reductions or realignments be so reflected in the fiscal year 2006 request. (p. 24)

66
From Statement of Managers accompanying the conference report to H.R. 4755,
H. Rept. 108792, see Congressional Record (daily edition), November 19, 2004, p.
H10770.
The conferees emphasize to the Legislative Branch agencies that the large budgetary increases requested in the fiscal year 2005 budget submissions cannot be sustained. The conferees encourage the agencies to submit more reasonable budget requests for fiscal year 2006, and thereafter.
Fiscal Year 2006
From U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2006, report to accompany H.R. 2985, 109th Cong., 1st sess., H. Rept.
109139 (Washington: GPO, 2006).
Legislative Branch Wide Matters
Mandatory and Price Level Increases.After reviewing budget presentation materials submitted by Legislative Branch entities, it is apparent to the Committee that
there is a wide variance in how the agencies formulate and present budget estimates, especially estimates for mandatory, or uncontrollable budget increases. To facilitate the Committees review and analysis of budget requests, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is directed to review and evaluate the basis of each Legislative Branch agencys budget estimates with the exception of those of the House
and the Senate. This review should place particular emphasis on evaluating the
basis of each agencys estimates of uncontrollable costs, including what the agency
presents as mandatory and price level expenses. GAO shall recommend to the
Committee budget formulation policy changes that address the composition of estimates as well as presentation format. Also, GAO is directed to examine each agencys treatment of Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs) in its budget submission and recommend consistent guidelines each agency can follow in formulating, presenting,
and justifying its FTE requirements. GAO should also evaluate each agencys treatment of non-recurring requirements. This evaluation should be of requirements
below the program level not simply a list of non-recurring programs. GAO shall recommend to the Committee a consistent analytical approach, which can be used by
each agency to identify non-recurring requirements of individual programs and reflect those changes in budget presentation materials. GAO shall report to the Committee on Appropriations of the House and Senate the results of its efforts by October 1, 2005 to provide sufficient time for the Committee to review and analyze so
that Legislative Branch agencies incorporate the appropriate changes in the formulation of their fiscal year 2007 budget requests. (pp. 45)
Legislative Branch Agency Reforms.The Congress and the nation are faced with
increased demands for Federal funds for every increasing domestic and international program. The Committee is impressed with the management and operational reforms implemented in several Legislative Branch agencies over the past
few years, including the Government Printing Office, the Government Accountability Office and the Chief Administrative Office of the House of Representatives.
The Committee believes that other legislative agencies can benefit by the examples
set by these agencies. Further opportunities exist for increases in efficiency resulting from new technology, performance based management, and other management
improvements. The Committee understands that organizational reform is difficult,
however, the task can be achieved if strong and dynamic leadership is attained. The
Committee extends the following advice gleaned from these successful agencies. It
is critical that agency heads look to the future in planning these endeavors and that
mid-managers and employees are participants as well as stakeholders in the process. The leaders and employees are guided in developing and embracing their own
logical and clear strategic vision for the organizations future. Agency management
needs to identify leaders at all levels that will embrace change, and never lose sight
of the most important asset of any organization, the staff and workforce. The Committee expects that all agencies will continue to look within for ways to complete
their missions by using the guidance and experiences of their successful sister agencies as models to reduce the demand for additional staff and larger budget increases
in the coming fiscal years. (p. 5)
Review statutes of legislative branch agency heads.There currently exist various
laws, processes, and practices governing the selection, appointment, removal, compensation, and term of service of the Heads and the Deputies of various agencies
in the Legislative Branch, including the Office of Compliance, the Congressional
Budget Office, and the Architect of the Capitol, the Library of Congress, the Government Printing Office, and the General Accounting Office. The Committee suggests
that the Joint Leadership of Congress, in order to establish uniformity, should re-

67
view, evaluate and consider the appropriate changes to current legislation and regulations governing these positions. (p. 6)
From U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Appropriations, 2006, report to accompany H.R. 2985, 109th Cong., 1st sess., S. Rept.
10989 (Washington: GPO, 2005).
Government Performance and Results Act
The Committee supports the applicability of many Government Performance and
Results Act (GPRA) principles to the Legislative Branch. GPRA encourages greater
efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability in Federal spending, and requires agencies to set goals and use performance measures for management and budgeting.
While most Legislative Branch agencies have developed strategic plans, several
agencies have not effectively dealt with major management problems and lack reliable data to verify and validate performance. While Legislative Branch agencies are
not required to comply with GPRA, the Committee believes the spirit and intent of
the Results Act should be applied to these agencies. The Committee intends to monitor agencies progress in developing and implementing meaningful performance
measures, describing how such measures will be verified and validated, linking performance measures to day-to-day activities, and coordinating across sister agencies. The Committee directs all legislative branch agencies to submit their plans for
achieving this goal within 90 days of enactment of this Act. (pp. 34)
Library of Congress
The Committee recognizes the high priority of the Librarys research mission in
support of the Congress, which is reflected in the amount recommended for the Congressional Research Service. (p. 35)
The Committee is concerned about the lack of transparency in the Library of Congress budget presentation. It is not always clear and understandable. The budget
presentation materials do not present meaningful programmatic information from a
zero-based perspective that allow the Committee to determine how priorities are established and where tradeoffs could be made. Therefore, the Committee directs the
Library of Congress to develop a budget presentation and justification package for
the fiscal year 2007 budget cycle that clearly addresses rates and assumptions used
in the base as well as a clear description for each program of what drives demand
for the program, what the nature of the programs workload is, and what service
or outcome each base program is intended to produce. A clear description of new
program starts and a detailed break out of rates and assumptions associated with
cost estimates for those programs including demand, workload, and outcome should
also be provided along with a clear explanation of how each program relates to goals
and objectives set forth in the Librarys strategic plan. The Committee expects the
Library will consult with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on the development of this new presentation package. (p. 35)
APPENDIX B: FINDINGS FROM THE PRODUCTION SUPPORT, TECHNICAL SUPPORT
ASSISTANT, AND AUDIO-VISUAL FUNCTIONS
Summary of the Program Activity reviews
Methodology
In 2005 CRS undertook assessments of its production, technical support, and
audio-visual needs, as well as the functions currently provided within the Service
in those areas. Data for these studies came from a variety of sources, including multiple discussions with potentially affected staff; a thorough review of all relevant position functions; initial and subsequent meetings with each assistant director and
deputy assistant director, some associate directors, and a sample of analysts, attorneys, editors, and section heads; and the use of structured questions.
Production and Administrative Support Functional Review: Findings Summary from the January 2005 Study
The study of production and administrative support functions found that the technical needs of research and analytic staff have changed. The study found that the
technical skills of newly hired analysts and attorneys often exceed those that the
production staff regularly demonstrate. Concurrently, there is a need for increasingly advanced and specialized technical skills to do the more sophisticated productpreparation work now required.
Production staff indicated that they primarily perform administrative functions
(e.g., logging ISIS requests, recording and reporting time and attendance, managing
and ordering supplies, and performing general receptionist activities). Some study
participants stated that some production staff do not consider currently needed

68
tasks as part of their duties and responsibilities. An example is importing data from
a variety of sources and transforming that data into tables, graphs, and charts for
inclusion into CRS products. Several production staff reported oftentimes not having
enough work to keep them occupied full time.
As a result, the current system has created unmet production needs and shifted
product-preparation demands, particularly for assistance in creating graphics and
obtaining editorial assistance. Some analysts have come to rely upon the Electronic
Research Products Office and the CRS Technology Office (TO) for assistance with
these tasks.
Technical Support Assistant Functional Review: Findings Summary from May
2005 Study
Because CRS research and analytic staff have become more technically sophisticated, the need for basic technical services has decreased. The study found that
newly hired and other technically sophisticated staff are more likely to try to diagnose and solve problems themselves before contacting a technical support assistant
(TSA). Also, the study found TSA skill levels inconsistently meet the needs of CRS
staff.
TSAs provide a wide array of technical support assistance: most work involves resolving hardware, software, CPU, password, and network issues. Some also assist
with special projects, provide graphics/mapping support, develop guidance documents, and assist TO with Service-wide projects. Study participants noted that work
required of TSAs is not standardized across CRS but instead varies by division and
office.
The current decentralized organizational structure does not ensure consistent
technical expertise. Across the research divisions TSAs report to different levels of
staff (assistant director, deputy assistant director, project management coordinator,
etc.), who prepare their performance reviews. Further, potential for duplication of
efforts among CRS help desk and user support units and TSAs is not cost-effective.
Audio-Visual Support Functional Review: Findings Summary from August
2005 Study
Direct congressional demand for audio-visual products has been declining for more
than ten years. And the need by CRS analysts for audio-visual support is uneven
calling into question the need to retain a separate, in-house staff for this purpose.

Staff Eligible for Full Retirement and Separation Incentive:

301 ...........................................................................................................................
301 ...........................................................................................................................
301 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
303 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
303 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
1411 .........................................................................................................................
Staff Eligible for Early Retirement and Separation Incentive:
301 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
303 ...........................................................................................................................
Staff Eligible for Separation Incentive Only:
301 ...........................................................................................................................
301 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
301 ...........................................................................................................................

PRODUCTION STAFF

Job Class. Series

CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
FERS
FERS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
FERS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
FERS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
CSRS
FERS
FERS
FERS
CSRS

1110
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
89 .....
810 ...
1110
1110
76 .....
118 ...

...
...
...
...

...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...

...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...

Ret. Plan

1110
1110
1110
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
810 ...
610 ...

Grade &
Step

Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.

Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.

Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................

Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................

Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................

Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Production Assistant ........................................................
Special Adm. Support Assistant ......................................

Sr. Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................

Sr. Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................
Sr. Production/Administrative Coordinator ............................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Sp. Adm. Support Assistant .............................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Sp. Adm. Support Assistant .............................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Library Technician ..................................................................

Job Title

APPENDIX C: SALARY, COMPENSATION, AND RETIREMENT ELIGIBILITY FOR THE AFFECTED STAFF

$69,614
$69,614
$58,361
$57,387

$69,614
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$50,762
$52,082

$69,614
$69,614
$69,614
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$52,082
$42,326

Annual Salary

$24,119
$16,744
$16,141
$12,668

$13,556
$15,917
$12,343
$12,040
$11,929
$7,874
$7,738
$7,673
$7,565
$7,864
$4,509

$13,414
$9,189
$5,882
$15,917
$12,529
$12,296
$12,112
$12,040
$10,194
$7,980
$7,872
$7,673
$7,603
$4,509
$7,135

EmployerPaid Benefits

$93,733
$86,358
$74,501
$70,054

$83,169
$67,999
$64,426
$64,123
$64,011
$59,956
$59,820
$59,756
$59,648
$58,626
$56,591

$83,028
$78,802
$75,496
$67,999
$64,612
$64,379
$64,195
$64,123
$62,276
$60,062
$59,954
$59,756
$59,685
$56,591
$49,461

Total Cost

69

Staff Eligible for Full Retirement and Separation Incentive:

2210 .........................................................................................................................
Staff Eligible for Early Retirement and Separation Incentive:
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
Staff Eligible for Separation Incentive Only:
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................
2210 .........................................................................................................................

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

.............

CSRS ...
CSRS ...
CSRS ...
FERS
FERS
FERS
FERS
FERS
FERS
FERS
CSRS
FERS
FERS
CSRS
FERS
FERS

128 ...
127 ...
127 ...
1210
127 ...
127 ...
125 ...
125 ...
124 ...
124 ...
126 ...
123 ...
124 ...
128 ...
122 ...
122 ...

...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...

CSRS ...

127 ...

.............

FERS ...

41 .....

Total Cost ............................................................................................................

...
...
...
...
...
...
...

FERS
FERS
FERS
CSRS
FERS
FERS
FERS

Ret. Plan

89 .....
88 .....
810 ...
88 .....
59 .....
59 .....
45 .....

Grade &
Step

344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
344 ...........................................................................................................................
1411 .........................................................................................................................
1411 .........................................................................................................................
304 ...........................................................................................................................
Staff Not Eligible for Retirement or Separation Incentive:
304 ...........................................................................................................................

Job Class. Series

Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.
Sr.

Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical
Technical

Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support
Support

Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst
Asst

....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................
....................................................

Sr. Technical Support Assistant ............................................

Sr. Technical Support Assistant ............................................
Sr. Technical Support Assistant ............................................

Sr. Technical Support Assistant ............................................

................................................................................................

Receptionist ...........................................................................

Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................

Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Sr. Production Assistant ........................................................
Reference Assistant ...............................................................
Reference Clerk ......................................................................
Receptionist ...........................................................................

Job Title

$83,438
$79,157
$77,027
$72,745
$74,875
$70,594
$70,594
$74,875
$68,463
$70,594
$79,157
$66,333
$66,333

$81,769
$77,027
$77,027

$77,027

..................

$26,989

$50,762
$49,420
$52,082
$49,420
$37,001
$37,001
$29,588

Annual Salary

APPENDIX C: SALARY, COMPENSATION, AND RETIREMENT ELIGIBILITY FOR THE AFFECTED STAFFContinued

$23,220
$26,739
$21,662
$24,425
$20,292
$24,506
$24,211
$18,496
$24,090
$20,079
$10,050
$22,736
$22,666

$19,282
$14,404
$9,866

$14,344

..................

$8,750

$19,174
$18,618
$13,848
$15,014
$11,782
$11,484
$5,553

EmployerPaid Benefits

$106,658
$105,896
$98,688
$97,170
$95,167
$95,099
$94,805
$93,371
$92,554
$90,673
$89,207
$89,069
$88,999

$101,051
$91,431
$86,893

$91,370

$2,429,674

$35,740

$69,936
$68,038
$65,930
$64,434
$48,783
$48,485
$35,141

Total Cost

70

.............

Total Cost ............................................................................................................

.............

357
337
694
224
5
31
171
17
470
694

Total ........................................................................................................................................................

Minority Composition ............................................................................................................................................

Nat.Am/Alaskan ...........................................................................................................................................
Asian American ............................................................................................................................................
African-American .........................................................................................................................................
Hispanic .......................................................................................................................................................
Non-Minority ..........................................................................................................................................................

Total ........................................................................................................................................................

Number

100.0

32.3
0.7
4.5
24.6
2.4
67.7

100.0

51.4
48.6

Percent

Total CRS Perm/

Indef Workforce

38

30
............
1
28
1
8

38

33
5

Number

100.0

78.9
............
2.6
73.7
2.6
21.1

100.0

86.8
13.2

Percent

Production Support

[Breakdown of CRS Staff by Gender and Race Categories As of September 15, 2005]

18

11
............
............
10
1
7

18

7
11

100.0

61.1
............
............
55.6
5.6
38.9

100.0

38.9
61.1

Percent

Technical Support
Assistants
Number

..................

..................

..................

$46,107

............
............
............
............
............
3

............
3

Number

$16,289

100.0

............
............
............
............
............
100.0

100.0

............
100.0

Percent

$4,430,962

$330,793

$1,670,496

$62,395

59

41
............
1
38
2
18

59

40
19

Number

100.0

69.5
............
1.7
64.4
3.4
30.5

100.0

67.8
32.2

Percent

Total Affected Staff

..................

..................

..................

Audio-Visual

Affected Staff by Category

................................................................................................

................................................................................................

................................................................................................

Sr. Technical Support Asst ....................................................

Female ..................................................................................................................................................................
Male ......................................................................................................................................................................

Category

.............

Total CRS Costs for 59 Affected Staff ...............................................................

.............

.............

FERS ...

APPENDIX D: DIVERSITY COMPOSITION OF THE AFFECTED STAFF

.............

Total Cost ............................................................................................................

All Audio/Visual Staff Are Eligible for Early Retirement: These staff are in the 1071
job classification series. To honor the privacy of the three individual staff members in this job series, CRS has not provided individual salary and cost data

AUDIO/VISUAL STAFF

124 ...

2210 .........................................................................................................................

71

72
APPENDIX E: TRANSITION RESOURCES PROVIDED

TO

AFFECTED STAFF

CRS is providing the following transition resources to affected staff:

an opportunity to participate in the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority
(VERA) and Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP) programs. Deadline for applying is December 2, 2005. Staff have from December 19, 2005
through January 3, 2006 to separate from the Library under these programs.
As of Tuesday, November 1, 2005, 20 affected staff have applied for these programs;
a special briefing on the VERA/VSIP process restricted to eligible CRS staff, in
coordination with the Librarys Office of Human Resources Services;
a two-day retirement seminar exclusively for these staff and their spouses. The
seminar was held on October 26 and 27. Twenty-three affected staff members
registered to attend, eighteen attended;
special individual retirement counseling, in coordination with the Librarys Office of Human Resources Services;
special training sessions on how to apply for positions using the Librarys automated hiring system. The Librarys Office of Human Resources conducted sessions on October 12 and 13. Individual sessions were arranged for those who
were unable to attend either of the earlier sessions;
a career services web page where staff can access career-related information
and links to numerous websites including job search engines, resume writing
and interview guides, job fair announcements, training opportunities, and more;
services of a career counselor who will be available one day a week through
September of 2006 to meet individually with staff and to present a career workshop once a month. The career counselor is expected to be available early November 2005;
a briefing on October 13, 2005 by a Reduction in Force (RIF) expert who has
been used frequently by the Library of Congress for other RIFs to provide an
overview of RIF procedures and to answer questions, to include any follow-up
questions by phone and email;
briefings on September 28, 2005 for all affected staff to review these transition
resources, and to give staff an opportunity to ask questions; and
continuous communications from the Associate Director for Workforce Development by e-mail to inform when positions they may be interested in opened, and
other upcoming activities to include career fairs, reminders of registration deadlines, and to remind them that they may continue to submit any questions that
they have during the transition.
Question. In your testimony you state that extensive consultation took place before you decided to eliminate production support, computer technical support, and
audio-visual functions. With whom did you consult? Was CRS staff in any way involved before you made your decision?
Answer. Before the final decision was made, in addition to multiple meetings with
the Services senior managers, CRS solicited input through a variety of venues including forums, one-on-one conversations, e-mail exchanges. CRS also held followup discussions with potentially affected staff as well as staff who use their services,
including a sample of analysts, attorneys, and section heads (first-line supervisors).
Question. Were the affected staffs given an opportunity to receive training that
may have given them an opportunity to keep their job or to apply for other positions
within CRS?
Answer. The skills required for the Services new technical positions are quite different from those required for the older production support and technical positions
that will be abolished. The specialized expertise required for these new positions
cannot be acquired or developed through some selected training courses.
In addition to traditional production support, the incumbents of the two older production support positions performed some administrative tasks as well. One of the
current production support positions is supervisory/managerial at the GS11 grade
level; and, the other is non-supervisory at the GS8 grade level.
When CRS defined the new work tasks and developed the associated position descriptions, all of the administrative tasks were consolidated into two new positions,
one is supervisory at the GS11 grade level and the other was classified by the Library of Congress Human Resources Services as a GS7, one grade level lower than
the GS8 production position. Both of the new administrative positions will have
fewer incumbents (ten total) than the number of incumbents of the current production positions (33 total). So far, three of the affected staff were competitively selected for these ten new administrative positions. A fourth individual from the affected staff was also selected but declined the offer and chose instead to retire.

73
CRS affected staff continue to receive training for the work that they perform in
their current positions. However, selecting particular individuals for specific training to improve their credentials for a new job could be seen as running counter to
merit-selection principles inherent in OPM regulations implementing the Government Employee Training Act. Information provided in the following questions addresses the issues of training staff for future positions.
Question. What actions have you taken to work with the rest of the Library to
find positions for the remaining 31 staff?
Answer. CRS and the Library will begin the process of seeking placements for the
remaining staff in June. The data and conditions for placing the remaining staff are
dictated by law, regulation, and the CRS collective bargaining agreement, which
govern when a reduction-in-force is established.
When the staffing changes were announced last September, it was the Directors
hope that by providing a 12-month notice, separation incentives, voluntary early retirement opportunities, and transition services that all 59 individuals would vacate
the positions before September 30, 2006. At this time, 29 of the 59 affected staff
have retired, resigned, or secured other positions. In the meantime, CRS continues
to provide a variety of career counseling services to affected staff and to provide
weekly notices of CRS and Library posted positions that may be of interest to them.
Question. How closely have you worked with the new Center for Learning and Development in the Library to assist affected staff in training for current and future
positions in the Library?
Answer. Staff from the CRS Office of Workforce Development worked closely with
the Librarys Center for Learning and Development in identifying 600 online courses
that would provide a broad array of training for Library staff as it pertains to their
current positions. The availability of courses has been communicated to all CRS
staff and a number of CRS staff members, including the affected staff, have taken
online courses.
The On-line Learning Center has been a topic of discussion at the weekly CRS
Research Policy Council meetings of senior managers who are advised to encourage
staff to enroll in the online training. As a result, a number of affected staff have
taken advantage of these training opportunities. In addition, the Career Services
Web Page that was established specifically for affected staff includes a link to the
Online Learning Center.
Providing training for future positions becomes more complex. The Government
Employee Training Act (GETA) permits training which will improve individual and
organizational performance and assist in achieving the agencys mission and performance goals. [5 USC4101(4)] OPM implementing regulations provide that mission-related training includes training that improves an employees current job performance and training that [a]llows for expansion or enhancement of an employees
current job [or e]nables an employee to perform needed or potentially needed duties
outside the current job at the same level of responsibility. [5 CFR 410.101 (d)]
Retraining to address an individuals skills obsolescence in the current position
and/or training and development to prepare an individual for a different occupation,
in the same agency, in another government agency, or in the private sector is also
permitted under OPM regulations. [5 CFR 410.101(e)] The selection of employees for
training opportunities, however, must follow merit system principles. [5 CFR
410.302 (a)(1)] Each agency must establish criteria for the fair and equitable selection and assignment of employees to training consistent with merit system principles. [5 CFR 410.306(a)]
Merit system principles are particularly applicable to training designed to prepare
employees for advancement. Thus, OPMs Training Policy Handbook provides that
[a]gencies training programs must consider all employees fairly and that [a]gency
merit promotion procedures must be followed in selecting employees for training
that is primarily to prepare trainees for advancement and that is not directly related to improving performance in their current positions.
Selecting particular employees to be accorded specific training designed to improve their advancement possibilities or to qualify them for other positions could be
seen to run counter to merit selection principles. The Library and CRS have developed a merit selection process for filling positions, and CRS also applies competitive
procedures to its longer term details within the agency and to designating section
heads. The GETA and implementing regulations would also seem to dictate that
similar principles be applied in the provision of training.
The focus of all training opportunities provided to staff complies with the Services
obligation to enhance staff skills for the positions currently held, rather than to provide training for possible future positions that could be seen as running counter to
merit-selection principles inherent in OPM regulations implementing the GETA.

74
Question. It is my understanding that of the 59 staff being eliminated, nearly 70
percent are minorities. What are your plans to address the major loss of minority
employees in CRS?
Answer. CRS is dedicated to maintaining a diverse workforce. When CRS announced its plan to eliminate three functions, the diversity profile of the Service was
32.3 percent minority. If all of the affected staff would have left and no new hires
added, the CRS workforce would have been reduced to 635 and the racial and ethnic
profile of that reduced staff would have reflected a minority population of 28.8 percent. The proportion of Asian Americans would have increased from 4.5 percent to
4.7 percent; Native Americans would have increased from .7 percent to .8 percent;
Hispanics would have remained the same at 2.4 percent; and the proportion of African Americans would have decreased from 24.6 percent to 20.9 percent.
Instead, as of February 28, 2006, after the retirement of 23 affected staff, attrition
unrelated to the workforce re-engineering, and the hiring of new staff in accordance
with the CRS hiring plan, 31.1 percent of CRS total permanent/indefinite workforce
of 685 is minority; .7 percent Native American, 4.7 percent Asian American, 23.1
percent African American, and 2.6 percent Hispanic.
CRS has filled four (4) of the new positions (with 12 incumbents). Of the twelve
incumbents hired, nine (75 percent) are minorities, and all of whom are African
American females.
CRS will continue to use national recruitment and hiring programs and sources
to attract minority applicants to CRS. These programs include targeting universities
and public policy schools with high minority enrollments to serve as recruitment
sources for entry-level professional positions, and forging special connections with
minority-serving organizations such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities,
the United Negro College Fund, the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional
Hispanic Caucus, and others. In addition, CRS continues to use programs such as
the CRS Law Recruit Program, the Student Diversity Internship Program, the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities National Internship Program, and the
Federal Presidential Management Fellowship Program to recruit minorities for CRS
positions.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

Senator ALLARD. The subcommittee stands in recess and we will

meet next on March 15 at 10:30 a.m., when we will take testimony
from the Secretary of the Senate and Architect of the Capitol on
their fiscal year 2007 budget requests. In addition, we will hear
from witnesses regarding progress of the Capitol Visitor Center as
part of the monthly oversight of that particular project.
I thank the participants today for sharing their views with us.
[Whereupon, at 11:45 a.m., Wednesday, March 1, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, March
15.]

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2007
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15, 2006

U.S. SENATE,
APPROPRIATIONS,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 10 a.m., in room SD138, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Wayne Allard (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senators Allard and Durbin.
SUBCOMMITTEE

OF THE

COMMITTEE

ON

U.S. SENATE
OFFICE

OF THE

SECRETARY

STATEMENT OF EMILY REYNOLDS, SECRETARY OF THE SENATE

ACCOMPANIED BY:
MARY SUIT JONES, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE SENATE
CHRIS DOBY, FINANCIAL CLERK
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Senator ALLARD. The subcommittee will come to order. Good

morning everybody. We meet today to take testimony on the fiscal
year 2007 budget request for the Secretary of the Senate and the
Architect of the Capitol, and review progress of the Capitol Visitor
Center (CVC) construction. The legislative branch budget request
totals roughly $4.2 billion, an increase of $460 million or 12 percent
over the current year.
While most agencies in the Presidents budget would be frozen at
current levels, a number of the agencies before this subcommittee
have proposed very substantial increases and we will need to scrutinize these requests very carefully. We will have three separate
panels today. Secretary Emily Reynolds will testify first, shes accompanied by Assistant Secretary of the Senate Mary Suit Jones,
and the new Financial Clerk of the Senate Chris Doby.
Our second panel will be the Architect of the Capitol, Alan
Hantman, and our third panel to discuss progress of the Capitol
Visitor Center construction will include Mr. Hantman, CVC Project
Executive Bob Hixon, and GAO representatives Bernie Ungar and
Terrell Dorn.
I extend a welcome to our witnesses this morning. Ms. Reynolds,
your office is requesting a budget of about $24 million, an increase
of roughly $1 million, or just above 5 percent over fiscal year 2006.
This budget would support the 26 departments that are part of the
Office of the Secretary and would accommodate cost of living and
(75)

76
merit increases. And well now proceed to the first panel. Welcome
Ms. Reynolds. You may proceed with your testimony. Its good to
see you.
Ms. REYNOLDS. Thank you Mr. Chairman, its an honor to be
with you. Were, of course, very grateful for your leadership as our
subcommittee chairman, and we appreciate this opportunity to talk
about the work of the Secretarys office. Id like to ask that my full
statement, which, of course, includes our complete department reports, be submitted for the record.
Today I would just like to give you a brief overview of the Secretarys operation and most importantly that budget request for fiscal year 2007 that you mentioned. As you said, weve requested
about $24 million; $22 million of that is in salary cost and $1.9 million for operating expenses. That slight increase as youve referenced is in cost of living allowance (COLA) and merit increases
so that we can continue to attract and retain the talent that the
Senate requires and deserves for the critical day to day operations
that we provide.
And Id like to take a couple of minutes today and just highlight
some of the work of the past year, since we were all last together
at this hearing. There are three key words that come to mind in
reflecting on the Secretarys operation. And those are continuity,
creativity and collaboration. Thats how our office functions and I
want to mention in particular in terms of continuity, because in so
many respects we are the institutional memory of the Senate. We
take very seriously the responsibility of passing that knowledge
along from generation to generation, incoming class to incoming
class, office to office. Our legislative department, the great folks
that you see on the floor of the Senate each and every day, continue to cross train among their various specialties, and about half
of that staff is cross trained.
Were also blessed in that a large number of people come to serve
the Senate for an extended period of time, but it makes it all the
more important when you begin to lose that institutional memory
in retirements that we try to anticipate those changes and work toward an appropriate line of succession. And at all times, we strive
to attract and retain the best talent possible. Individuals for whom
coming to the Senate to serve this body as their career is a high
priority.
And, of course, on a much broader scale, its our responsibility to
prepare daily so that you and your colleagues can carry out your
constitutional responsibilities under any circumstance. So for us
that continuity has both a daily impact and a much broader view
as well.
I mention creativity as well and I hope that we bring a certain
level of creativity in each of our 26 departments. And Id like to
just highlight five things today that were doing.
A perfect example of that creativity is the Senates website. And
our new home page in particular which were very proud to have
the chance to show off and talk about a little bit. All of our lives
have been changed dramatically by the worldwide web, and the
Senate is no exception. Senate.gov now celebrates a decade of service to the Senate community and the general public and received
an astonishing 50 million visits last year. Thats five times as many

77
as just 5 years ago, so remarkable growth in terms of the publics
access to senate.gov. And with that, thanks to the support of this
subcommittee we unveiled a handsome new home page in January.
Theres more content on the front page, the site also provides site
wide searches from every page, and, of course, most importantly
those direct links to the Members home pages.
Im really delighted that U.S. News took note of the new homepage, and described it as a rich new website and one thats much
easier to research. I also mentioned to you when we were here last
year, that our historical office had underway a project of a pictorial
directory, with the images of all Senators who have served since
1789, by State and by class. That book Faces of the Senate was
completed in November and it really is a treasure. It was a monumental effort on the part of our Senate photo historian. And it was
interesting in that as she reached out to historical societies, museums and other organizations in trying to locate as many images as
possible, the project attracted the attention of a National Guardsman from Vermont who was stationed in Iraq. He was working on
a historical project for his unit, and he e-mailed our photo historian
saying I dont have a lot of time to assist, but with my own project
Im finding resources out there I never knew existed. And amazingly enough, he helped us locate six images of former Members for
whom we had no previous record.
The gift shop I want to mention, a tremendous presence here in
the Senate. And weve enhanced the gift shop operation by adding
an online presence to our intranet Webster so that our Senate community can more easily see the vast array of products that we have
available.
Im also proud that in this bicentennial year of Constantino
Brumidis birth, the artist of the Capitol, weve added a product
line with Brumidi featured merchandise so that our merchandise
reflects the rich history of the Capitol and hopefully for people it
has some educational value as well.
You may also recall, that 2 years ago we completed the publication of the Senates fine arts catalogue. A beautiful volume, the
companion volume, a catalogue of our graphics art collection will
be available later this year. And just like the fine arts publication,
it will be a magnificent presentation of the 900 historic engravings
and lithographs in the Senate collection.
I had the opportunity to speak last week with a member of our
curatorial advisory board, and she said that she believed that this
publication will be very well received in the arts community, the
academic community, as a first ever glance if you will at this tremendous collection of the Senates and its an excellent research
tool. So well have that to you later this year. Im excited about it.
In the Senate reception room, thanks to the leadership of Senator Dodd, we will add an important representation from the 18th
century. And thats the addition of a mural that will commemorate
the two authors of the Great or Connecticut Compromise. That
mural will depict the authors of that compromise, Roger Sherman,
and Oliver Ellsworth and will be unveiled later this year.
And finally in terms of collaboration, so much of what we do each
and every day is dependent on a team approach, among our departments working with the Architect of the Capitol, working with

78
members of the Senate community and especially with our Sergeant at Arms. And once again Id love to give three quick examples. I want to publicly thank and commend the Sergeant at Arms,
and this subcommittee without whose support the project would
not have been possible for the completion of the new Senate support facility. From our gift shop, stationery, the curator, library,
our disbursing operation, having that state-of-the-art storage space
will make a difference each and every day in terms of the level of
support we provide our Senate community. The facility is a welcome addition and should serve our needs for years to come.
One of the most important services that you and your colleagues
offer the folks at home is providing flags that are flown over the
Capitol, and we have an exciting pilot project underway with 26 offices and I believe your office is one, to streamline that process of
the purchase of pre-flown flags. Its become cumbersome at times,
and again thanks to this pilot, we should have real success and report back to you on that along the way.
And finally our legislative information system, another project
generously funded by this subcommittee, weve made tremendous
progress again this year. Again a team effort between our LIS Office and most especially the Senate Legislative Counsel. Already
this year, over 95 percent of the bills introduced in this session of
the 109th Congress have been written and formatted through the
XML authoring application known as LEXA. So were very proud
of that milestone.
I often marvel that the first Secretary of the Senate carried out
his responsibilities alone, in the first years of the Senates existence. By the time he died in office in 1814, he had convinced his
appropriators to allow him to hire two clerks. As much as things
have changed and as our responsibilities have grown through the
years, the three fundamental responsibilities of our office, to provide the legislative, financial, and administrative support to this
institution remain at the heart of what we do, each and every day.
Its our duty and our honor to carry out these functions for the Senate.
PREPARED STATEMENT

On behalf of our entire team, we thank this subcommittee Mr.

Chairman, for your support and I look forward to questions. Thank
you.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

EMILY J. REYNOLDS

Mr. Chairman, Senator Durbin, and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for
your invitation to present testimony in support of the budget request of the Office
of the Secretary of the Senate for fiscal year 2007.
Detailed information about the work of the 26 departments of the Office of the
Secretary is provided in the annual reports which follow. I am pleased to provide
this statement to highlight the achievements of the Office and the outstanding work
of our dedicated employees.
My statement includes: Presenting the fiscal year 2007 budget request; implementing mandated systems: financial management information system (FMIS) and
legislative information system (LIS); Capitol Visitor Center; continuity of operations
planning; and maintaining and improving current and historic legislative, financial
and administrative services.

79
PRESENTING THE FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST

I am requesting a total fiscal year 2007 budget of $24,066,000. The fiscal year
2007 budget request is comprised of $22,166,000 in salary costs and $1,900,000 for
the operating budget of the Office of the Secretary. The salary budget represents
an increase over the fiscal year 2006 budget as a result of (1) the costs associated
with the annual Cost of Living Adjustment in the amount of $654,000 and (2) an
additional $646,000 for merit increases and other staffing. The operating budget
represents a decrease of $80,000 from fiscal year 2006. The funding for the study
on employment compensation, hiring and benefits practices, included in last years
funding, is a non-reoccurring expense.
The net effect of my total budget request for fiscal year 2007 is an increase of
$1,220,000.
Our request in the operating budget is a sound one, enabling us to meet our operating needs and provide the necessary services to the United State Senate through
our legislative, financial and administrative offices.
In reference to the salary budget, first and foremost, this request will enable us
to continue to attract and retain talented and dedicated individuals to serve the
needs of the United States Senate.

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY APPORTIONMENT SCHEDULE

Amount available
fiscal year 2006,
Public Law 109
55

Budget estimate
fiscal year 2007

Departmental operating budget:

Executive office .................................................................................
Administrative services .....................................................................
Legislative services ...........................................................................

$630,000
1,290,000
60,000

$550,000
1,290,000
60,000

80,000
........................
........................

Total operating budget .................................................................

1,980,000

1,900,000

80,000

Item

Difference

IMPLEMENTING MANDATED SYSTEMS

Two systems critical to our operation are mandated by law, and I would like to
spend a few moments on each to highlight recent progress, and to thank the committee for your ongoing support of both.
Financial Management Information System (FMIS)
The Financial Management Information System, or FMIS, is used by approximately 140 offices. Consistent with the five year strategic plan, the Disbursing Office continues to modernize processes and applications to meet the continued demand by Senate offices for efficiency, accountability and ease of use. The goal is to
move to a paperless voucher system, improve the Web FMIS system, and make payroll and accounting system improvements.
Over the last two years work has been underway to update and simplify the underlying technology of Web FMIS, basically replacing all Visual Basic Client/Server
and Cold Fusion Web technology with WebSphere web pages thereby creating a
thin client application that can be accessed via an intranet browser. In August
2004 Web FMIS r9.0 for pilot offices, which was a complete rewriting of the Web
FMIS functionality using all intranet based pages, was implemented. By the end of
April, all Web FMIS users were using the intranet version of Web FMIS.
During fiscal year 2005 and the first half of fiscal year 2006, improvements to
Web FMIS were as follows:
In the November 2004 release, additional functionality identified by the pilot offices was addressed. This new release was provided to new offices of the 109th
Congress. In the February 2005 release, a security certificate was added to the
Web FMIS web site (i.e., adding the S to https://webfmis.senate.gov) and
changed the extracts for the nightly Web FMIS reporting cycle to use table-driven parameters rather than hard-coded ones. In April 2005, report and document
printing was provided via Adobe, standard Senate software, rather than Web
FMIS-specific files. This completed moving Web FMIS to the zero-client platform, an important milestone in providing critical systems in a disaster situation. With this change, the Rules Committee Audit staff moved from client-server based screens to intranet-based pages for their functions, Disbursing staff
began to use standard notepad text in documenting corrections made to vouchers. In July 2005, the focus was on additional functionality for Disbursing, in-

80
cluding new pages for the Inbox and Document Review functions, enhancements
to the Advice of Change process and streamlining the document approval process. Technology was updated and provided more functionality on the Inbox
pages and the travel reimbursement mileage rate maintenance page. Additional
functionality was added to the Documents/Create page and the Budget page,
and bugs were fixed.
In May 2005, the SAVI system was upgraded, which enables Senate staff to
check the status of reimbursements, whether via check or direct deposit, to enable its use by Macintosh computer users.
The Disbursing Office makes payments via direct deposit and via check using
the Checkwriter software. In 2006, Checkwriter release 6, which rewrites the
security component, will be tested with implementation tentatively scheduled
for summer 2006.
On Saturday, December 3, 2005, the Sergeant at Arms technical staff conducted
a disaster recovery test of the Senates computing facilities, including the financial management information system (FMIS) functions. The test involved
switching the Senates network from accessing systems at the Primary Computing Facility (PCF) to the backup facility, and powering down the PCF.
The SAAs primary purpose was to test the technical process of switching to
our backup facility, and only a limited amount of time was available for functional testing. The SAA staff wanted to complete the exercise within a 12-hour
window, including the time needed to switch us to the backup facility and back
to the PCF. A two-hour functional testing window was expected. In the scenario,
FMIS systems and data would be failed-over to the backup facility, and made
available for testing during the functional testing window. The systems would
then be failed back to the PCF, but the data would not be failed back. Consequently, any changes made while testing at the backup facility would not be
made to production data.
Within the limited scope of what we were able to test, most of the critical
components of FMIS were successfully tested. A request has been made to the
SAA that disaster recovery tests be conducted twice a year and that additional
system components be tested at each successive event.
The computing infrastructure for FMIS is provided by the Sergeant at Arms.
Each year upgrades are made to the infrastructure software. The major upgrade
this year was the implementation of a new version of the mainframe operating
system software, Z/OS. This upgrade required FMIS testing, both before implementation to identify and resolve any incompatibilities, and after implementation to verify that all functions are working properly.
During 2005 work continued with Bearing Point to define the requirements for
additional functionality required for the two Web FMIS releases planned for 2006:
Web FMIS r11 B.Planned for Summer 2006, this release will add the ability
to import invoice data from an outside vendor in order to create a voucher
with minimal re-typing. (This process is similar to the import process by
which data from an online ESR, created via SAVI, is used to create a travel
voucher).
Web FMIS r12 B.Planned for late Fall 2006, this release will be a pilot of
paperless voucher processing, which requires adding electronic signature and
documentation imaging functionality.
In addition, during fiscal year 2006 the following FMIS activities are anticipated:
Developing requirements for integrating the Funds Advance Tracking System
(FATS) into FMIS. FATS, a stand-alone PC-based system, tracks election cycle
information used in the voucher review process, and tracks travel advances and
petty cash advances against dollar maximum and total allocation rules.
Implementing DB2 vs. 8 in compatibility mode.
Researching the implementation of online distribution of system reports.
Completing fiscal year 2004 Financial Statements in Hyperion and start working on fiscal year 2005.
Performing some minor enhancements to the FAMIS vendor file.
A more detailed report on FMIS is included in the department report of the Disbursing Office which follows.
Legislative Information System (LIS)
The LISAP project team continues to enhance the Senates legislative editing
XML application (LEXA). The Office of the Senate Legislative Counsel (SLC) used
LEXA throughout 2005 and 80 percent of introduced and reported measures for the
first session of the 109th Congress were created as XML documents. As modifications and features were developed for LEXA, the SLCs use continues to increase.
Thus far in the second session of the 109th Congress, approximately 96 percent of

81
the introduced and reported bills have been created as XML documents. Additional
document types, such as conference reports and engrossed and enrolled bills, were
added to LEXA.
The LISAP project team continues to work with the Senate offices, the Clerk of
the House, the Government Printing Office and the Library of Congress to develop
standards and tools to create, print and exchange legislative documents in XML.
The Government Printing Office (GPO) uses LEXA to update and print Senate XML
documents as requested. GPO also provides support for LEXA, as directed in the
2004 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, by maintaining the printing software
in LEXA that converts an XML document to locators for printing through Microcomp. GPO is also in the process of reworking the software that creates and prints
tables. These tools will be incorporated into both the Senate and House XML authoring applications.
A joint project to convert the compilations of current law to an XML format was
completed last year. Joint projects for this year include completion of the new table
tool and development of standards for drafting appropriations amendments in XML.
The Document Management System (DMS) for the SLC will be implemented once
the SLC has completed the transition from XyWrite to LEXA. The SLCs DMS will
be integrated with LEXA and will provide a powerful tracking, management and delivery tool.
CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER

While the Architect of the Capitol directly oversees this massive and impressive
project, I would like to briefly mention the ongoing involvement of the Secretarys
office in this endeavor. My colleague, the Clerk of the House, and I continue to facilitate weekly meetings with senior staff of the joint leadership of Congress to address and hopefully quickly resolve issues that might impact the status of the
project or the operation of Congress in general.
In addition, I also facilitate weekly meetings with the Architects office for the
senior staff of the Senate Sergeant at Arms, Capitol Police, Rules Committee and
Appropriations Committee in order to address the expansion space plans for the
Senate and any issues with regard to the Capitol Visitor Centers (CVCs) construction that may directly impact Senate operations.
Although the construction creates numerous temporary inconveniences to Senators, staff and visitors, completion of the CVC will bring substantial improvements
in enhanced security and visitor amenities, and its educational benefits for our visitors will be tremendous.
CONTINUITY OF OPERATIONS AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLANNING

The Office of the Secretary maintains a Continuity of Operations (COOP) program

to ensure that the Senate can fulfill its constitutional obligations under any circumstances. Plans are in place to support Senate floor operations both on and off
Capitol Hill, and to permit each department within the Office of the Secretary to
perform its essential functions during and after an emergency.
COOP planning in the Office of the Secretary began in late 2000. Since that time,
COOP plans were successfully implemented during the anthrax and ricin incidents,
and more than twenty drills and exercises to test and refine our plans have been
conducted. In conjunction with the Sergeant at Arms, Capitol Police, the Office of
the Attending Physician and the Architect of the Capitol, Emergency Operations
Centers, Briefing Centers and Alternate Senate Chambers, have been exercised both
on and off campus.
In addition, equipment, supplies and other items critical to the conduct of essential functions have been identified and assembled as fly-away kits for the Senate
Chamber and for each department of the Office of the Secretary. Multiple copies of
each fly-away kit have been produced; some are stored in our offices, and back-up
kits are stored nearby but off the main campus, as well as at other sites outside
the District of Columbia. This approach will enable the Office of the Secretary to
resume essential operations within 12 to 24 hours, even if there is no opportunity
to retrieve anything from our offices.
Today, the Office of the Secretary is prepared to do the following in the event of
emergency:
support Senate Floor operations in an Alternate Senate Chamber within 12
hours on campus, and within 24 to 72 hours off campus, depending upon location;
support an emergency legislative session at a Briefing Center, if required;
support Briefing Center Operations at any of three designated locations within
1 hour;

82
activate an Emergency Operations Center at Postal Square or another nearcampus site within 1 hour; and
activate an Emergency Operations Center at another site within the National
Capital region within 3 hours.
Activities in the Past Year
During the past year, the Office of the Secretary continued to update, refine and
exercise emergency preparedness plans and operations. Specific activities included
the following:
Updated plans for use of an Alternate Senate Chamber, Briefing Center and
Emergency Operations Center;
Working with the Capitol Police and the Office of the Sergeant at Arms, refined
response plans for air threat incidents;
Updated fly-away kits for use at an Alternate Chamber; and
Conducted and participated in ten emergency preparedness drills and exercises.
The central mission of the Office of the Secretary is to provide the legislative, financial and administrative support required for the conduct of Senate business. Our
emergency preparedness programs are designed to ensure that the Senate can carry
out its Constitutional functions under any circumstances. These programs are critical to our mission, and they are a permanent, integral part of the Secretarys ongoing operation.
MAINTAINING AND IMPROVING CURRENT AND HISTORIC LEGISLATIVE, FINANCIAL AND
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
LEGISLATIVE OFFICES

The Legislative Department of the Office of the Secretary of the Senate provides
the support essential to Senators to carry out their daily chamber activities as well
as the constitutional responsibilities of the Senate. The department consists of eight
officesthe Bill Clerk, Captioning Services, Daily Digest, Enrolling Clerk, Executive
Clerk, Journal Clerk, Legislative Clerk, and the Official Reporters of Debates, which
are supervised by the Secretary through the Legislative Clerk. The Parliamentarians office is also part of the Legislative Department of the Secretary of the Senate.
Each of the nine offices within the Legislative Department is supervised by experienced veterans of the Secretarys office. The average length of service of legislative
supervisors in the Office of the Secretary of the Senate is 20 years. The experience
of this senior professional staff is a great asset for the Senate. In order to ensure
well-rounded expertise, the legislative team cross-trains extensively among their
specialties.
1. BILL CLERK

The Office of the Bill Clerk collects and records data on the legislative activity
of the Senate, which becomes the historical record of official Senate business. The
Bill Clerks Office keeps this information in its handwritten files and ledgers and
also enters it into the Senates automated retrieval system so that it is available
to all House and Senate offices via the Legislative Information System (LIS). The
Bill Clerk records actions of the Senate with regard to bills, resolutions, reports,
amendments, co-sponsors, public law numbers, and recorded votes. The Bill Clerk
is responsible for preparing for print all measures introduced, received, submitted,
and reported in the Senate. The Bill Clerk also assigns numbers to all Senate bills
and resolutions. All the information received in this office comes directly from the
Senate floor in written form. The Bill Clerks office is generally regarded as the
most timely and most accurate source of legislative information.
Legislative Activity
The Bill Clerks office processed into the database more than 2,000 additional legislative items and 150 additional roll call votes than the previous session. For comparative purposes, below is a summary of the 108th Congress, broken down into 1st
and 2nd sessions, as compared to the first session of the 109th Congress:

Senate Bills ..........................................................................

Senate Joint Resolutions ......................................................
Senate Concurrent Resolutions ............................................
Senate Resolutions ...............................................................
Amendments Submitted .......................................................

108th Congress, 1st Session

109th Congress, 1st Session

108th Congress, 2nd Session

109th Congress, 1st Session

2,003
26
86
283
2,231

2,169
27
75
347
2,695

1,032
16
66
204
1,857

2,169
27
75
347
2,695

83
108th Congress, 1st Session

109th Congress, 1st Session

108th Congress, 2nd Session

109th Congress, 1st Session

House Bills ............................................................................

House Joint Resolutions ........................................................
House Concurrent Resolutions ..............................................
Measures Reported ...............................................................
Written Reports .....................................................................

282
20
78
352
220

286
11
88
286
212

322
12
87
317
208

286
11
88
286
212

Total Legislation ......................................................

5,571

6,196

4,121

6,196

Roll Call Votes ......................................................................

459

366

216

366

Assistance from the Government Printing Office (GPO)

The Bill Clerks office maintains a good working relationship with the Government Printing Office with the common goal of providing the best service possible
to meet the needs of the Senate. Toward this end, GPO continues to respond in a
timely manner to the Secretarys request through the Bill Clerks office for the
printing of bills and reports, including the expedited printing of priority matters for
the Senate chamber. For example, the Secretary requested, through the Bill Clerk,
that GPO expedite the printing of roughly 60 measures for consideration by the Senate.
Projects
Amendment Tracking System (ATS).In the fall of 2001, the Rules Committee
staff approached the Secretarys office with the task of scanning submitted amendments onto the Amendment Tracking System on LIS. The Rules Committee identified a need for Senate staff to have all amendments submitted in the Senate made
available to them online shortly after being submitted, especially during cloture.
Rules Committee also requested that the Secretary assess the feasibility of lifting
the page limitation for scanning amendments onto the ATS Indexer.
In September 2005, the Secretary of the Senate, through the Bill Clerks office,
began scanning submitted amendments to the ATS Indexer. The Technology Development division of the Sergeant at Arms office has been quick and responsive, making the ATS Indexer a dynamic, usable tool available to the Senate community. The
Bill Clerks were able to implement this new requirement seamlessly. With the
added function of the ATS Indexer, the Secretary has made available to the Senate
community all amendments, submitted and proposed, and in doing so, lifted the
page limit from 25 to 50. Initial response from users is both positive and constructive.
Electronic Ledger System.Shortly after the September 2001 attacks and the subsequent anthrax attacks in the Capitol complex, the Bill Clerk identified the need
to have available an electronic version of the official Senate ledgers in order to ensure the integrity of the information recorded in the books. It is anticipated that
the electronic version will be available for use during possible emergency scenarios,
either via remote access or portable device. The Technology Development division
of the Sergeant-at-Arms is working to develop two separate functions of this ledger
system. One is an electronic data entry system, which will mimic the layout of the
current Senate ledgers printed by the Government Printing Office. The other, a
search function, has already been developed and is currently in use in select clerical
offices of the legislative staff and is routinely enhanced and modified by the excellent ELS project team at Postal Square. Both of these programs will be housed on
a separate server to maintain the integrity of the ledger data. This search system
offers an invaluable tool capable of utilizing more complex search requirements.
2. OFFICE OF CAPTIONING SERVICES

The Office of Captioning Services provides realtime captioning of Senate floor proceedings for the deaf and hard-of-hearing and unofficial electronic transcripts of
Senate floor proceedings to Senate offices via the Senate intranet.
General Overview
Accuracy continues to be the top priority of this Office. Overall caption quality is
monitored through daily Translation Data Reports, monitoring of captions in
realtime, and review of caption files on the Senate intranet. Dedication to this process has produced an overall captioning accuracy average above 99 percent this past
year.

84
A major event of 2005 for the Office of Captioning Services was realtime captioning the 55th Annual Presidential Inauguration. The Offices captions of the historic event appeared on six jumbotrons located on the West Front of the Capitol and
the National Mall.
Continuity of operations planning and preparation during 2005 continued to be
a priority to ensure staff is prepared and confident about the Offices ability to relocate and successfully caption from a remote location in the event of an emergency.
Participation in a Continuity of Operations template review project with the Sergeant at Arms Continuity of Operations Program Manager provided an excellent opportunity for an in-depth review of the Office of Captioning Services Plan.
Technology Update
The Office received a major upgrade of software and hardware in 2004 and thus
continues to work with vendors to provide enhancements and correct deficiencies in
the new realtime captioning software.
2006 Objectives
The Office of Captioning Services constantly strives to maintain and improve the
high level of caption accuracy that has been established. The Office is committed
to this goal and will strive to find new and innovative ways to accomplish this objective.
Another priority of the Office of Captioning Services will be to prepare and plan
for the procurement and installation of equipment and relocation of the Office of
Captioning Services to the Senate expansion space in the Capitol Visitor Center.
3. SENATE DAILY DIGEST

The Senate Daily Digest serves seven principal functions:

To render a brief, concise and easy-to-read accounting of all official actions
taken by the Senate in the Congressional Record section known as the Daily
Digest.
To compile an accounting of all meetings of Senate committees, subcommittees,
joint committees and committees of conference.
To enter all Senate and Joint committee scheduling data into the Senates webbased scheduling application system. Committee scheduling information is also
prepared for publication in the Daily Digest in three formats: Day-Ahead Schedule; Congressional Program for the Week Ahead; and the extended schedule
which actually appears in the Extensions of Remarks section of the Congressional Record.
To enter into the Senates Legislative Information System all official actions
taken by Senate committees on legislation, nominations, and treaties.
To publish in the Daily Digest a listing of all legislation which have become
public law.
To publish on the first legislative day of each month in the Daily Digest a Resume of Congressional Activity which includes all Congressional statistical information, including days and time in session; measures introduced, reported
and passed; and roll call votes. (See Resume of Congressional Activity which follows).
To assist the House Daily Digest Editor in the preparation at the end of each
session of Congress a history of public bills enacted into law and a final resume
of congressional statistical activity.
Committee Activity
Senate committees held a total of 874 meetings during the first session of the
109th Congress, as contrasted with 838 meetings during the first session of the
108th Congress.
All hearings and business meetings (including joint meetings and conferences) are
scheduled through the Office of the Senate Daily Digest and are published in the
Congressional Record and entered in the Legislative Information System. Meeting
outcomes are also published by the Daily Digest in the Congressional Record each
day.
Chamber Activity
The Senate was in session a total of 159 days, for a total of 1,222 hours and 26
minutes. There were 3 live quorum calls and 366 record votes. (See Chart depicting
a 20-Year Comparison of Senate Legislative Activity which follows).

Senate Convened ..............................................

Senate Adjourned ..............................................
Days in Session ................................................
Hours in Session ...............................................
Average Hours per Day .....................................
Total Measures Passed .....................................
Roll Call Votes ..................................................
Quorum Calls ....................................................
Public Laws ......................................................
Treaties Ratified ...............................................
Nominations Confirmed ....................................
Average Voting Attendance ..............................

Senate Convened ..............................................

Senate Adjourned ..............................................
Days in Session ................................................
Hours in Session ...............................................
Average Hours per Day .....................................
Total Measures Passed .....................................
Roll Call Votes ..................................................
Quorum Calls ....................................................
Public Laws ......................................................
Treaties Ratified ...............................................
Nominations Confirmed ....................................
Average Voting Attendance ..............................
Sessions Convened Before 12 Noon .................
Sessions Convened at 12 Noon ........................
Sessions Convened after 12 Noon ...................
Sessions Continued after 6 p.m ......................
Sessions Continued after 12 Midnight ............
Saturday Sessions ............................................
Sunday Sessions ...............................................

1/6
12/22
170
1,21452
7.1
616
420
36
240
3
46,404
94.03
131
12
25
97
6
3
1

1987

1/25
10/21
137
1,12648
8.2
814
379
26
473
15
42,317
91.58
120
12
5
37
7
......................
......................

1988

1/3
11/21
136
1,00319
7.4
605
312
11
240
9
45,585
98.0
95
14
27
88
9
1
......................

1989

1/23
10/28
138
1,25014
9.1
716
326
3
244
15
42,493
97.47
116
4
17
100
13
3
2

1990

1/3
1/3/92
158
1,20044
7.6
626
280
3
243
15
45,369
97.16
126
9
23
102
6
2
......................

1991

20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY

1/3
11/13
153
1,09307
7.1
386
298
6
153
15
25,576
98.68

1997

1/27
10/21
143
1,09505
7.7
506
314
4
241
53
20,302
97.47

1998

1/6
11/19
162
1,18357
7.3
549
374
7
170
13
22,468
98.02

1999

1/24
12/15
141
1,01751
7.2
696
298
6
410
39
22,512
96.99

2000

1/3
12/20
173
1,23615
7.1
425
380
3
136
3
25,091
98.29

2001

1992

1/23
11/20
149
1,04223
7.0
523
253
2
241
17
23,633
96.36

2002

1/3
10/9
129
1,09109
8.5
651
270
5
347
32
30,619
95.4
112
......................
10
91
4
2
......................

20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITYContinued

1/3
10/4
132
1,03645
7.8
476
306
2
245
28
33,176
98.22

1996

1/21
10/18
143
1,27815
8.9
747
359
16
424
12
39,893
95.72
117
25
1
92
15
2
......................

1986

1/7
12/9
167
1,45405
8.7
590
459
3
198
11
21,580
96.07

2003

1/5
11/26
153
1,26941
8.3
473
395
2
210
20
38,676
97.6
128
6
15
100
9
2
......................

1993

1/20
12/8
133
1,03131
7.7
663
216
1
300
15
24,420
95.54

2004

1/25
12/01
138
1,24333
9.0
465
329
6
255
8
37,446
97.02
120
9
17
100
7
3
......................

1994

1/4
12/22
159
1,22226
7.7
624
366
3
170
6
25,942
97.41

2005

1/4
1/3/96
211
1,83910
8.7
346
613
3
88
10
40,535
98.07
184
2
12
158
3
5
3

1995

85

113
15
7
88
1
1
......................

1996

Prepared by the Senate Daily DigestOffice of the Secretary.

Sessions Convened Before 12 Noon .................

Sessions Convened at 12 Noon ........................
Sessions Convened after 12 Noon ...................
Sessions Continued after 6 p.m ......................
Sessions Continued after 12 Midnight ............
Saturday Sessions ............................................
Sunday Sessions ...............................................

115
12
7
96
......................
1
1

1997

109
31
2
93
......................
1
......................

1998

118
17
19
113
......................
3
......................

1999

107
25
24
94
......................
1
1

2000

140
10
21
108
2
3
......................

2001

119
12
23
103
3
......................
......................

2002

20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITYContinuedContinued

2003

133
4
23
134
8
1
1

2004

104
9
21
129
2
2
1

2005

121
1
36
120
3
2
2

86

87
Computer Activities
The Daily Digest continues to send the complete publication at the end of each
day to the Government Printing Office electronically. The Editor, Assistant Editor,
and Committee Scheduling Coordinator function solely within the framework of
adaptability to prepare Digest copy on computers, storing and sharing information,
permitting prompt editing, and the final transfer to floppy disc. The Digest continues the practice of sending a disc along with a duplicate hard copy to GPO, even
though GPO receives the Digest copy by electronic transfer long before hand delivery is completed adding to the timeliness of publishing the Congressional Record.
The Digest office continues to feel comfortable with this procedure, both to allow the
Digest Editor to physically view what is being transmitted to GPO, and to allow
GPO staff to have a comparable final product to cross reference.
The Digest office continues to work closely with Senate computer staff to refine
the LIS/DMS system, including further refinements to the Senate committee scheduling application which will improve the data entry process. The committee scheduling application was developed in 1999 as a server-based web-enabled application
that is browser accessible to all Senate offices. It was designed to replace the committee scheduling functions and reports that were supported by the mainframebased Senate Legis System.
Government Printing Office (GPO)
The Daily Digest continues to discuss with the Government Printing Office problems encountered with the printing of the Digest, and are pleased to report that
with the onset of electronic transfer of the Digest copy, occurrences of editing corrections, especially the insertion of page reference numbers, or transcript errors are infrequent. Discussions with GPO continue regarding the inclusion of on-line corrections.
Office Summation
The Daily Digest continues to consult on a daily basis with the Senate Parliamentarians, Legislative, Executive, Journal, and Bill Clerks, the Official Reporters of
Debates, as well as the staffs of the Policy Committees and other committee staffs,
and is grateful for the continued support from these offices.
4. ENROLLING CLERK

The Enrolling Clerk prepares, proofreads, corrects, and prints all Senate passed
legislation prior to its transmittal to the House of Representatives, the National Archives, the Secretary of State, the United States Claims Court, and the White
House.
During 2005, 50 enrolled bills (transmitted to the President) and 11 concurrent
resolutions (transmitted to Archives) were prepared, printed, proofread, corrected,
and printed on parchment.
A total of 624 additional pieces of legislation in one form or another, were passed
or agreed to by the Senate, requiring processing from this office.
5. EXECUTIVE CLERK

The Executive Clerk prepares an accurate record of actions taken by the Senate
during executive sessions (proceedings on nominations and treaties) which is published as the Journal of the Executive Proceedings of the Senate at the end of each
session of Congress. The Executive Clerk also prepares daily the Executive Calendar
as well as all nomination and treaty resolutions for transmittal to the President. Additionally, the Executive Clerks office processes all executive communications, presidential messages and petitions and memorials.
Nominations
During the first session of the 109th Congress, there were 1,201 nomination messages sent to the Senate by the President, transmitting 27,686 nominations to positions requiring Senate confirmation and 18 messages withdrawing nominations sent
to the Senate during the first session of the 109th Congress. Of the total nominations transmitted, 511 were for civilian positions other than lists in the Foreign
Service, Coast Guard, NOAA, and Public Health Service. In addition, there were
2,740 nominees in the civilian list categories named above. Military nominations
received this session totaled 24,435 (9,860Air Force; 8,586Army; 4,607Navy
and 1,382Marine Corps). The Senate confirmed 25,942 nominations this session.
Pursuant to the provisions of paragraph six of Senate Rule XXXI, 67 nominations
were returned to the President during the first session of the 109th Congress.

88
Treaties
There were 8 treaties transmitted to the Senate by the President during the first
session of the 109th Congress for its advice and consent to ratification, which were
ordered printed as treaty documents for the use of the Senate (Treaty Doc. 1091
through 1098). The Senate gave its advice and consent to 6 treaties with various
conditions, declarations, understandings and provisos to the resolutions of advice
and consent to ratification.
Executive Reports and Roll Call Votes
There were 8 executive reports relating to treaties and a nomination ordered
printed for the use of the Senate during the first session of the 109th Congress (Executive Report 1091 through 1098). The Senate conducted 27 roll call votes in executive session, all on or in relation to nominations and treaties.
During the year, the Sergeant at Arms Systems Development Services Branch
worked with the Executive Clerk to make the Executive Calendar more user friendly and also to further ongoing improvements to the Legislative Information System
pertaining to the processing of nominations, treaties, executive communications,
presidential messages and petitions and memorials. Additionally, the SAA worked
closely with the Executive Clerk in the development of the new program for writing
and publishing the Journal of Executive Proceedings of the Senate each session. The
new program, now in use for the second session of the 109th Congress, will greatly
improve the pace at which the Journal can be developed and published each year.
Executive Communications
For the first session of the 109th Congress, 5,119 executive communications, 253
petitions and memorials and 34 Presidential messages were received and processed.
6. JOURNAL CLERK

The Journal Clerk takes notes of the daily legislative proceedings of the Senate
in the Minute Book and prepares a history of bills and resolutions for the printed
Journal of the Proceedings of the Senate, or Senate Journal, as required by Article
I, Section V of the Constitution. The Senate Journal is published each calendar
year. In 2005, the Journal Clerk completed the production of the 867 page 2004 Senate Journal.
The Journal staff each take 90 minute turns at the rostrum in the Senate Chamber, noting by hand for inclusion in the Minute Book (i) all orders (entered into by
the Senate through unanimous consent agreements), (ii) legislative messages received from the President of the United States, (iii) messages from the House of
Representatives, (iv) legislative actions as taken by the Senate (including motions
made by Senators, points of order raised, and roll call votes taken), (v) amendments
submitted and proposed for consideration, (vi) bills and joint resolutions introduced,
and (vii) concurrent and Senate resolutions as submitted. These notes of the proceedings are then compiled in electronic form for eventual publication at the end
of each calendar year in the Senate Journal.
The LIS Senate Journal Authoring System, first utilized by the Journal Clerk to
successfully compile the 2004 Journal (from start to finish), continues to be updated
as needed to further assist in the efficiency of production; the 2005 Journal is expected to be sent to the Government Printing Office for printing at the end of
March.
7. LEGISLATIVE CLERK

The Legislative Clerk sits at the Secretarys desk in the Senate Chamber and
reads aloud bills, amendments, the Senate Journal, Presidential messages, and
other such materials when so directed by the Presiding Officer of the Senate. The
Legislative Clerk calls the roll of members to establish the presence of a quorum
and to record and tally all yea and nay votes. The office prepares the Senate Calendar of Business, published each day that the Senate is in session, and prepares
additional publications relating to Senate class membership and committee and subcommittee assignments. The Legislative Clerk maintains the official copy of all
measures pending before the Senate and must incorporate into those measures any
amendments that are agreed to. This office retains custody of official messages received from the House of Representatives and conference reports awaiting action by
the Senate.
The office is responsible for verifying the accuracy of information entered into the
Legislative Information System (LIS) by the various offices of the Secretary. In an
effort to monitor and improve the LIS, the Legislative Clerk acts as the liaison between legislative clerks and technical operations staff of the Sergeant at Arms. The

89
Legislative Clerk reviews, prioritizes, and forwards change requests from the clerks
to the technical operations staff. Over the past year, 30 change requests submitted
by the clerks to improve the system have been implemented. Feedback from the
Senate community regarding LIS continues to be excellent.
Additionally, the Legislative Clerk is the Director of Legislative Services, providing a single line of communication to the Assistant Secretary and Secretary with
responsibility for overall coordination, supervision, scheduling, and cross-training.
Summary of Activity
The first session of the 109th Congress completed its legislative business and adjourned sine die on December 22, 2005. During 2005, the Senate was in session 159
days and conducted 366 roll call votes. There were 286 measures reported from committees and 624 total measures passed. In addition, there were 2,695 amendments
processed.
Cross-Training
Recognizing the importance of planning for the continuity of Senate business,
under both normal and possibly extenuating circumstances, cross-training is strongly emphasized among the Secretarys legislative staff. To ensure additional staff is
trained to perform the basic floor responsibilities of the Legislative Clerk, as well
as the various other floor-related responsibilities of the Secretary, approximately 50
percent of the legislative staff is cross-trained.
Amendment Tracking System Expansion
The Senates web-based application that allows users to access images of Senate
amendments proposed to legislation is called the Amendment Tracking System
(ATS). Developed in 1997 to provide the Senate with online access to amendments,
ATS provides legislative staff with scanned images of the amendments, and descriptive information about them, including their purpose, sponsor, cosponsors, submitted
date, proposed date, and status.
During this past year, the Secretary, through the Legislative Clerk, Bill Clerk and
Information Systems, spent many hours working with the technical development
staff of the Sergeant at Arms to give the ATS a major overhaul. Some of the less
visible changes, implemented in March, included upgrades to the hardware and underlying software programs.
In September, the scope of information available on ATS expanded to include submitted amendments, those that have been submitted but have not been proposed
on the Senate floor. ATS also expanded the size of amendment images from 25 to
50 pages, so users are now able to see up to 50 pages of a submitted or proposed
amendment. The Senate community welcomed the ATS enhancement enthusiastically and feedback has been very positive.
8. OFFICIAL REPORTERS OF DEBATES

The official Reporters of Debates prepare and edit for publication in the Congressional Record a substantially verbatim report of the proceedings of the Senate, and
serve as liaison for all Senate personnel on matters relating to the content of the
Record. The transcript of proceedings, submitted statements and legislation is transmitted in hard copy and electronically throughout the day to the Government Printing Office (GPO).
The office works diligently to assure that the electronic submissions to GPO are
timely and efficient. The Official Reporters encourage offices to make submissions
to the Record by electronic means, which results in both a tremendous cost saving
to the Senate and minimizes keyboard errors.
To enhance efficiency, the office provides guidelines on format for the Congressional Record. These provide a helpful tool to assure an accurate and timely printing
of each days Congressional Record.
9. PARLIAMENTARIAN

The Parliamentarians Office continues to perform its essential institutional responsibilities to act as a neutral arbiter among all parties with an interest in the
legislative process. These responsibilities include advising the Chair, Senators and
their staff, as well as committee staff, House members and their staffs, administration officials, the media and members of the general public, on all matters requiring
an interpretation of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the precedents of the Senate,
unanimous consent agreements, as well as provisions of public law affecting the proceedings of the Senate.
The Parliamentarians work in close cooperation with the Senate leadership and
their floor staffs in coordinating all of the business on the Senate floor. The Parlia-

90
mentarian or one of his assistants is always present on the Senate floor when the
Senate is in session, standing ready to assist the Presiding Officer in his or her official duties, as well as to assist any other Senator on procedural matters. The Parliamentarians work closely with the staff of the Vice President of the United States
and the Vice President himself whenever he performs his duties as President of the
Senate.
The Parliamentarians monitor all proceedings on the floor of the Senate, advise
the Presiding Officer on the competing rights of the Senators on the floor, and advise all Senators as to what is appropriate in debate. The Parliamentarians keep
track of the amendments offered to the legislation pending on the Senate floor, and
monitor them for points of order. The Parliamentarians reviewed more than 1,000
amendments during 2005 to determine if they met various procedural requirements,
such as germaneness. The Parliamentarians also reviewed thousands of pages of
conference reports to determine what provisions could appropriately be included
therein.
The Office of the Parliamentarian is responsible for the referral to the appropriate
committees of all legislation introduced in the Senate, all legislation received from
the House, as well as all communications received from the executive branch, state
and local governments, and private citizens. In order to perform this responsibility,
the Parliamentarians do extensive legal and legislative research. During 2005, the
Parliamentarian and his assistants referred 2,610 measures and 5,406 communications to the appropriate Senate committees. The office worked extensively with Senators and their staffs to advise them of the jurisdictional consequences of particular
drafts of legislation, and evaluated the jurisdictional effect of proposed modifications
in drafting. The office continues to address the jurisdictional questions posed by the
creation of the Department of Homeland Security, by the adoption of S. Res. 445,
which reorganizes intelligence and homeland security jurisdiction of the Senates
committees, and by the enactment of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The Parliamentarians have made dozens of decisions about the
committee referrals of nominations for new positions created in this department,
nominations for positions which existed before this department was created but
whose responsibilities have changed, and hundreds of legislative proposals concerning the departments responsibilities.
During 2005, as has been the case in the past, the staff of the Parliamentarians
Office was frequently called on to analyze and advise Senators on a great number
of issues arising under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. An additional layer
of procedural and budgetary complexity was added this year, as this office was
called upon to advise on unique issues arising from the need to consider two different reconciliation bills and several general appropriations bills in the wake of the
emergency brought about by Hurricane Katrina. The Senate considered two separate budget reconciliation bills in 2005, including the first spending reduction reconciliation bill in almost a decade. Such bills present the Parliamentarians Office
with hundreds of judgment calls in the analysis of complex and disparate legislation.
Additionally, in the last five years, rules relating to legislation on appropriations
bills, and the scope of conference reports on all bills were reinstated. This has
opened up hundreds of Senate amendments to renewed scrutiny by the Parliamentarians, and has meant that the Parliamentarians now have the responsibility of potentially reviewing every provision of every conference report considered by both the
House and the Senate.
FINANCIAL OPERATIONS: DISBURSING OFFICE
DISBURSING OFFICE ORGANIZATION

The mission of the Senate Disbursing Office is to provide efficient and effective
central financial and human resource data management, information and advice to
the distributed, individually managed offices, and to Members and employees of the
United States Senate. To accomplish this mission, the Senate Disbursing Office
manages the collection of information from the distributed accounting locations in
the Senate to formulate and consolidate the agency level budget, disburse the payroll, pay the Senates bills, prepare auditable financial statements, and provide appropriate counseling and advice. The Senate Disbursing Office collects information
from Members and employees that is necessary to maintain and administer the retirement, health insurance, life insurance, and other central human resource programs to provide responsive, personal attention to Members and employees on a
non-biased and confidential basis. The Senate Disbursing Office also manages the
distribution of central financial and human resource information to the individual
Member Offices, Committees, and Administrative and Leadership offices in the Sen-

91
ate while maintaining the appropriate control of information for the protection of
individual Members and Senate employees.
To support the mission of the Senate Disbursing Office, the organization is structured in a manner that is intended to enhance its ability to provide quality work,
maintain a high level of customer service, promote good internal controls, efficiency
and teamwork, and provide for the appropriate levels of supervision and management. The long-term financial needs of the Senate are best served by an organization staffed with highly trained professionals who possess a high degree of institutional knowledge, sound judgment, and interpersonal skills that reflect the unique
nature of the United States Senate.
DEPUTY FOR BENEFITS AND FINANCIAL SERVICES

The principal responsibility of this position is to provide expertise on Federal retirement and benefits, payroll, and front office processes. Coordination of the interaction between the Financial Services, Employee Benefits, and Payroll sections is
also a major responsibility of the position, in addition to the planning and project
management of new computer systems and programs. The Deputy for Benefits and
Financial Services ensures that job processes are efficient and up to date, modifies
computer support systems, implements regulatory and legislated changes, and designs and produces forms for use in all three sections.
After year end processing of payroll for the calendar year 2004, a few minor alterations to the new version of the payroll system were made, and enhancements to
the COLA process were smoothly completed. W2s were issued promptly and were
immediately available on the Imaging system.
Starting in February, enhancements to the Document Imaging System began and
updates to the system, including the ability to e-mail images to other agencies and
to rearrange documents within folders, were added. Back up and storage processes
for document images continue to be refined. Existing Disaster Recovery efforts continue to be improved to provide easy access to this important data. All microfilm
records from the Benefits/Payroll side of the Office were imaged and by the end of
the year, there was no longer a need to use microfilm.
During April, the qualified lender certification process, part of the Student Loan
Repayment Program, was modified. The main drawback encountered was to authorize a Disbursing representative to talk with the staff members loan servicer, and
the verification of the loan particulars by a follow up call to the lender. The new
process requires the staff member to get a standard form completed by their lender
and submit it with their paperwork. This removed a tremendous number of phone
calls to and from lenders, the Office, and staff members and has greatly expedited
the process. It also allowed the process to be handled on a rotating basis by a payroll specialist.
During the year many reports used by the Employee Benefits Section were examined and updated to reflect new reporting requirements and to enhance system support. One new form was produced for the Termination Log, which tracks all employees who left the Senate during the previous payroll period. Now, all required forms
for terminating employees are produced by our payroll system.
The Senate warehouse project is nearing completion as the process of
transitioning materials is in its final phase. For many years, Disbursing files were
stored in two Senate off-site locations, due to space limitations. All Disbursing files
in both off-site warehouses were examined, organized, placed on pallets, and numbered in preparation for the move to the new warehouse. The numbers of pallets
requiring storage room were confirmed, and over 70 file cabinets holding historical
personnel and office records were prepared for the move in early December 2005.
An enclosed, secure and environmentally controlled area was provided for personnel
files and 6 new revolving vertical storage file cabinets were prepared for the site.
The cabinets will hold all current files and provide ample space for growth. Additional space for 100 pallets was also provided in the new warehouse which should
fulfill Disbursings storage needs for many years.
FRONT COUNTERADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES

The Front Counter is the main service area of all general Senate business and
financial activity. The Front Counter maintains the Senates internal accountability
of funds used in daily operations. Reconciliation of such funds is executed on a daily
basis. The Front Counter provides training to newly authorized payroll contacts
along with continuing guidance to all contacts in the execution of business operations. It is the receiving point for most incoming expense vouchers, payroll actions,
and employee benefits related forms, and is the initial verification point to ensure
that paperwork received in the Disbursing Office conforms to all applicable Senate

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rules, regulations, and statutes. The Front Counter is the first line of service provided to Senate Members, Officers, and employees. All new Senate employees (permanent and temporary) who will work in the Capitol Hill Senate offices are administered the required oath of office and personnel affidavit and provided verbal and
written detailed information regarding their pay and benefits. Authorization is certified to new and state employees for issuance of their Senate I.D. card. Advances
are issued to Senate staff authorized for an advance for official Senate travel. Cash
and check advances are entered and reconciled in the Funds Advance Tracking System (FATS). Repayment of travel advances is executed after processing of certified
expenses is complete. Travelers Checks are available on a non-profit basis to assist
the traveler. Numerous inquiries are handled daily, ranging from pay, benefits,
taxes, voucher processing, reporting, laws, and Senate regulations, and must always
be answered accurately and fully to provide the highest degree of customer service.
Cash and checks received from Senate entities as part of their daily business are
handled through the Front Counter and become part of the Senates accountability
of federally appropriated funds and are then processed through the Senates general
ledger system.
General Activities
The Front Counter processed approximately 2,200 cash advances, totaling approximately $1.1 million and initialized 710 check/direct deposit advances, totaling
approximately $709,000.
Received and processed more than 28,000 checks, totaling over $3,000,000.
Administered Oath and Personnel Affidavits to more than 3,000 new Senate staff
and advised them of their benefits.
Maintained brochures for 10 Federal health carriers and distributed approximately 3,500 brochures to new and existing staff during the annual FEHB Open
Season.
Provided 25 training sessions to new Administrative Managers.
The Front Office operations continued the daily reconciliation of operations and
strengthened internal office controls. Training and guidance to new Administrative
Managers and business contacts continued, as well as the incorporation of updates
of the scanning and imaging project into daily operations. A major emphasis was
placed on assisting employees in maximizing their Thrift Savings Plan contributions
and making them aware of the Thrift Savings Plan catch up program when applicable. Front Office operations continued to provide the Senate community with
prompt, courteous, and informative advice regarding Disbursing operations.
PAYROLL SECTION

The Payroll Section maintains the Human Resources Management System

(HRMS) and is responsible for the processing, verifying, and warehousing all payroll
information submitted to the Disbursing Office by Senators for their personal staff,
by Chairmen for their committee staff, and by other elected officials for their staff;
issuing salary payments to the above employees; rectifying returns of student loan
allowance payments, jointly maintaining the Automated Clearing House (ACH)
FEDLINE facilities with the Accounts Payable Section for the normal transmittal
of payroll deposits to the Federal Reserve; distributing the appropriate payroll expenditure and allowance reports to the individual offices; issuing the proper withholding and agency contributions reports to the Accounting Department; and transmitting the proper Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) information to the National Finance
Center (NFC), while maintaining earnings records for distribution to the Social Security Administration, and maintaining employees taxable earnings records for W
2 statements. The Payroll Section is also responsible for the payroll expenditure
data portion of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.
General Activities
The Payroll Section processed a January 1, 2006 cost of living increase of 3.44
percent. The Payroll Section maintained the normal schedule of processing TSP
open season forms. Employees took full advantage of the increase of TSP deductions
making the most of the new $15,000 maximum. For those employees over 50 years
of age, the TSP catch-up programs provided them with an opportunity to make additional contributions in excess of the standard program.
The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina gave members of the Payroll Section the opportunity to work directly with TSP employees as their COOP facility was located
in the Virginia suburbs. Several visits were made to the site to ensure the deductions for employees of the Senate were properly applied, and to receive training on
their Web based processing system.

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The Student Loan Program, Flexible Spending Accounts, and Long Term Care account processing continues. The office continues to refine and improve processes in
working with third party contractors. In addition, the elections of 2004 presented
the section with the task of opening and closing nine offices plus the monitoring of
S. Res. 9 payrolls during the first 6 months of 2005.
The Payroll Section again participated in the December disaster recovery testing.
This years test entailed using the ACF processing equipment to operate the payroll/
personnel system from the Hart Building while SAA programmers ran trial payrolls
from dial up sources. Part of the test was for members of SAA Production Services
to produce the payroll output from printers located at the ACF. During the holidays,
members of the Payroll Section conducted another test of the payroll personnel system by processing over 400 salary changes through dial up from a laptop computer.
The payroll personnel system test proved that it could be run from many locations
at the same time.
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SECTION

The primary responsibilities of the Employee Benefits Section (EBS) are administration of health insurance, life insurance and all retirement programs for Members
and employees of the Senate. This includes counseling, processing of paperwork, research, dissemination of information and interpretation of retirement and benefits
laws and regulations. In addition, the sectional work includes research and
verification of all prior federal service and prior Senate service for new and returning appointees. EBS provides this information for payroll input, and once Official
Personnel Folders and Transcripts of Service are received, verifies the accuracy of
the information provided and reconciles as necessary. Transcripts of Service, including all official retirement and benefits documentation, are provided to other federal
agencies when Senate Members and staff are hired elsewhere in the government.
EBS processes employment verifications for loans, the Bar Exam, the FBI, OPM,
and DOD, among others. Unemployment claim forms are completed, and employees
are counseled on their eligibility. Department of Labor billings for unemployment
compensation paid to Senate employees are reviewed in EBS and submitted by
voucher to the Accounting Section for payment, as are the employee fees associated
with the Flexible Spending Accounts. Designations of Beneficiary for FEGLI, CSRS,
FERS, and unpaid compensation are filed and checked by EBS.
General Activities
The year began with EBS finalizing retirement estimates and processing the
many retirement cases associated with the outgoing Senators and their staffs, as
well as committee staff affected by the changes. Approximately 150 retirement cases
were processed throughout 2005.
There was a great deal of employee turnover in early 2005. New Members appointed numerous employees from the House and Executive Branch, and many
other employees left with their outgoing Members, many of whom were appointed
to positions in the Executive Branch. This caused a dramatic increase in appointments to be researched and processed, retirement records to be closed out, termination packages of benefits information to be compiled and mailed out, and health
insurance enrollments to be processed. Transcripts of service for employees going to
other federal agencies, and other tasks associated with employees changing jobs
were at a high level this year. These required prior employment research and
verification, new FEHB, FEGLI, FSA, CSRS, FERS and TSP enrollments, and the
associated requests for backup verification.
The 2004 OPM FEGLI Open Season (OS) elections took effect September 1, 2005.
EBS verified and processed all OS elections and provided reminder notifications and
guidance to those affected. Approximately 350 Senate employee FEGLI changes
were processed.
Interagency meetings attended involved time spent on the development and understanding of the new Vision and Dental (V&D) programs that will surface in late
2006 and the new Voluntary Benefits Portal that is in development under the direction of Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to combine third-party administration of FSA, LTCI and the new V&D programs. Information was also shared on the
implementation of the FEGLI Open Season enrollments. Interaction and cooperation
were essential in the continuing operations of the New Orleans-based Thrift Savings
Plan and the National Finance Center in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. EBS did
as much as possible to provide assistance and information to Senate staff that would
normally be provided by TSP.
The annual FEHB Open Season was held and approximately 500 employees
changed plans. These changes were processed and reported to carriers in record
time. Once again, the on-line Checkbook Guide to Health Plans was made available

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to Senate employees to research and compare FEHB plans. This tool will remain
available to staff throughout the year. Additional effort was made to increase employee awareness and understanding of this valuable tool, and feedback is positive.
The FEHB Open Season Health Fair was also attended by about 600 employees and
as an additional service, it was open to all other federal employees on the Hill, including House, Capitol Police, Architect of the Capitol and Senate Restaurant employees. In addition to having health plan representatives available to provide information and answer questions, representatives from FSA Feds and Long Term Care
Insurance were also in attendance.
Much effort was made in coordination with the Senate Computer Center to effect
computer enhancements and provide additional automated forms to our database.
This has provided greater efficiency and increased accuracy of information.
EBS continues to work with our File Room personnel to modify our procedures
and the flow of forms to maintain imaged documentation with COOP preparedness
in mind. For COOP readiness with respect to employee personnel folder access, the
goal for 2006 is to explore alternatives to complete the scanning of all prior employee personnel folder documents that are housed in the Disbursing file room.
Educational seminars were held for the Civil Service Retirement System and the
Federal Employees Retirement System. These seminars for staff were well attended
and well received.
Due to the continued boom in the housing market, employment verifications came
in at a rapid pace, averaging over 100 per month. Unemployment verifications were
especially high early in the year and remained constant throughout the year. Telephone inquiries, though not specifically tracked, continued at high levels.
DISBURSING OFFICE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Headed by the Deputy for Financial Management, the mission of Disbursing Office Financial Management (DOFM) is to coordinate all central financial policies,
procedures, and activities, to process and pay expense vouchers within reasonable
time frames, to work toward producing an auditable consolidated financial statement for the Senate and to provide professional customer service, training and confidential financial guidance to all Senate accounting locations. In addition, the Financial Management group is responsible for the compilation of the annual operating budget of the United States Senate for presentation to the Committee on Appropriations as well as for the formulation, presentation and execution of the budget
for the Senate. On a semiannual basis, this group is also responsible for the compilation, validation and completion of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.
DOFM is segmented into three functional departments: Accounting, Accounts Payable, and Budget. The Accounts Payable Department is subdivided into three sections: the Audit group, the Disbursement group and the Vendor/SAVI group. The
Deputy coordinates the activities of the three functional departments, establishes
central financial policies and procedures, acts as the primary liaison to Human Resources, and carries out the directives of the Financial Clerk and the Secretary of
the Senate.
ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT

During fiscal year 2005, the Accounting Department approved nearly 47,800 expense reimbursement vouchers, processed 1,300 deposits for items ranging from receipts received by the Senate operations, such as the Senates Revolving Funds, to
canceled subscription refunds from Member offices. General ledger maintenance also
prompted the entry of thousands of adjustment entries that include the entry of all
appropriation and allowance funding limitation transactions, all accounting cycle
closing entries, and all non-voucher reimbursement transactions such as payroll adjustments, COLA (cost of living) budget uploads, stop payment requests, travel advances and repayments, and limited payability reimbursements.
This year the Accounting Department assisted in the validation of various system
upgrades and modifications, including the testing required to implement Web Release 10.0, an upgrade to the mainframe operating system to Z/OS, and the testing
of last non-zero balance date to fix process control. During January 2005, the Accounting Department with assistance from a contractor, Bearing Point, completed
the 2004 year-end process to close and reset revenue, expense and budgetary general ledger accounts to zero. During June 2005, we successfully tested and implemented in Federal FAMIS another document purge including the archiving of Web
report data for lapsed years. Further, toward the end of the fiscal year, the financial
file rollover was performed to update FAMIS tables and create the new index codes
needed to accommodate data for fiscal year 2006.

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The Department of the Treasurys monthly financial reporting requirements includes a Statement of Accountability that details all increases and decreases to the
accountability of the Secretary of the Senate, such as checks issued during the
month and deposits received, as well as a detailed listing of cash on hand. Also, on
a monthly basis, reported to the Department of the Treasury is the Statement of
Transactions According to Appropriations, Fund and Receipt Accounts that summarizes all activity at the appropriation level of all monies disbursed by the Secretary
of the Senate through the Financial Clerk of the Senate. All activity by appropriation account is reconciled with the Department of the Treasury on a monthly and
annual basis. The annual reconciliation of the Treasury Combined Statement is also
used in the reporting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as part of
the submission of the annual operating budget of the Senate.
This year, the Accounting Department transmitted all Federal tax payments for
Federal, Social Security, and Medicare taxes withheld from payroll expenditures, as
well as the Senates matching contribution for Social Security and Medicare, to the
Federal Reserve Bank. The Department also performed quarterly reporting to the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and annual reporting and reconciliation to the IRS
and the Social Security Administration. Payments for employee withholdings for
state income taxes were reported and paid on a quarterly basis to each state with
applicable state income taxes withheld. Monthly reconciliations were performed with
the National Finance Center regarding the employee withholdings and agency
matching contributions for the Thrift Savings Plan.
In addition to Treasurys external reporting deadlines, there are internal reporting requirements such as the monthly ledger statements for all Member offices and
all other offices with payroll and non-payroll expenditures. These ledger statements
detail all of the financial activity for the appropriate accounting period with regard
to official expenditures in detail and summary form. Each month, the Accounting
Department reviews and verifies the accuracy of the statements before distribution
is made.
The Accounting Department, in conjunction with the Deputy for Financial Management, continues to work closely with the Sergeant at Arms Finance Department
in completing the corrective actions that were identified during our pro-forma financial statements audit ability assessment. Based on the results of this exercise, 23
corrective actions were suggested including an action plan and proposed schedule
to have them corrected. Some of the actions were rather simple to implement while
others will take significantly longer. Of the 23 corrective actions noted, 18 have been
completed and 5 are still in process. As part of this project, the Accounting Group
is working with the SAA in reconciling FAMIS entries to Asset Center. The Accounting Group also finalized clearing all CASHLINK outstanding items.
As part of the financial statement initiative, the accounting group has worked on
the validation of the Senates pro-forma financial statements for fiscal year 2004.
The validation of the statements of financial position, net costs and changes in net
position for fiscal year 2004 is complete. Work is still underway on the last two
statementsbudgetary resources and financeand is expected to be completed by
the end of March. At that time, work on the fiscal year 2005 statements will begin.
Toward the end of the calendar year, in coordination with SAA staff, the Chief
Accountant and the Deputy for Financial Management participated in successful
testing of our disaster recovery facility.
ACCOUNTS PAYABLE
VENDOR/SAVI SECTION

Created in 2003, the Vendor/SAVI section is responsible for maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the Senates central vendor (payee) file, for the prompt completion of new vendor file requests, and service requests related to the Offices webbased payment tracking system known as SAVI. This section also assists the IT Department performing periodic testing and monitoring of the performance of the
SAVI system.
Currently, there are more than 13,400 vendor records stored in the vendor file.
Daily requests for new vendor addresses or updates to existing vendor information
are processed within 24 hours of being received. In 2004, the A/P Department began
to pay vendors electronically via the Automated Clearing House (ACH). Besides updating mailing addresses, the Vendor/SAVI section facilitates the use of ACH by
switching the method of payment requested by the vendor from check to ACH.
Whenever a new remittance address is added to the vendor file, a standard letter
is mailed to our vendors requesting tax and banking information. Currently, more
than 1,250 vendors and over half of the state offices landlords are being paid by
ACH.

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As stated earlier, SAVI is Disbursings web-based payment tracking system. Senate staff may electronically create, save, and file expense reimbursement forms,
track their progress, and receive detailed information on payments made. The most
common service requests are those for system user ids, system passwords and to activate deactivated accounts; less common but more complicated are employee requests for an alternative expense payment method. An employee can choose to have
their payroll set up for direct deposit but may have their expenses reimbursed by
paper check.
The Vendor/SAVI section works closely with the A/P disbursements group resolving returned EFT issues. EFT payments are returned periodically for a variety of
reasons. The reasons given have included incorrect account numbers, incorrect ABA
routing numbers, and, in rare instances, a nonparticipating financial institution.
Most EFT return issues are easy to resolve; however, there are some instances that
result with a vendor being converted back to paper check payments. Currently,
there are no unresolved returned EFT issues.
The Vendor/SAVI section continues to electronically scan and store supporting
documentation of vendor file requests. Currently, with assistance from the Disbursement Group, over 5,000 vendors have been electronically scanned and the paper
files certified for destruction. In the near future, this section will assist the IT Department in testing an automatic e-mail notification system which will alert vendors
when an EFT payment has been made and will provide pertinent payment information.
This year, the Vendor/SAVI section processed over 2,700 vendor file requests,
completed nearly 2,200 SAVI service requests and mailed over 1,400 vendor information letters.
ACCOUNTS PAYABLE
DISBURSEMENTS DEPARTMENT

Well over 120,000 expense claims were received and processed by the department
in 2005. More than 32,500 expense checks were written and approximately 56,500
direct deposit reimbursements were transmitted. The department has experienced
a small decline of roughly 7 percent in the number of checks written and a slightly
larger increase of 13 percent in the number of ACH payments, and it is expected
that this trend will continue. The department suffered no performance loss, ensuring that all vendors and employees continued to receive timely and accurate payments.
After vouchers are paid, they are sorted and filed by document number. Vouchers
are grouped in 6-month clusters to accommodate their retrieval for the semi-annual Report of the Secretary of the Senate. Files are maintained for the current period and two prior periods in-house as space is limited. Older documents are stored
at the warehouse facility.
A major function of the department is to prepare adjustment documents. Adjustments are varied and include the following: preparation of foreign travel advances
and vouchers, reimbursements for expenses incurred by Senate Leadership, reissuance of items held as accounts receivable collections, re-issuance of payments for
which non-receipt is claimed, and various supplemental adjustments received from
the Payroll Department. Such adjustments are usually disbursed by check, but an
increasing number are now handled electronically via ACH as more vendors and
employees opt for this payment method.
The Disbursements Department is also responsible for researching returned
checks as vendors request additional information relating to payment allocation.
Fortunately, few checks are returned. This is a result of the use of a centralized
vendor file and accurate certification of payments. There are currently no unresolved returned check issues.
During 2005, an increasing number of ACH items were returned for reasons ranging from erroneous account information to non-participation by depositing banks.
Some of the returns were simply notices of change while others were rejected outright. Procedures were established which created a liaison with the Vendor/SAVI
group, Payroll, and Accounting. Corrections are forwarded to the Vendor/SAVI group
so the corrections may be made in the vendor file. Corrections involving payroll are
forwarded to that department. Such corrections are downloaded into the vendor file
for nightly processing.
All rejected items are logged into an ACH Reports folder in Excel. They are classified as either Payroll or Accounts Payable, and the actual daily reports are also
scanned into the folder. Once logged in, the payroll items are forwarded to the Payroll Department, and the non-payroll items are forwarded to Vendor/SAVI for appropriate corrective action. Corrective actions include correction of erroneous data and

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retransmission, or sometimes re-issuance by paper check. Once the corrective action
is determined, an accounting memo is drafted and given to Disbursements and the
appropriate action is taken. The Excel spreadsheet contains details of the return as
well as information relating to the corrective action taken. Accounting then uses the
information contained in the spreadsheet to assist them in reconciling CASHLINK
with the Treasury.
The Accounts Payable Disbursements Department prepares mailing labels for the
distribution of the monthly ledgers to the 140 accounting locations throughout the
Senate. Although the ledgers are sorted and sent out by Accounting, the Disbursements Group maintains the file of how and where the statements are to be delivered. This information is transferred to mailing labels, placed on manila envelopes,
and given to Accounting. Offices expressing no preference have their statements
sent to their respective offices marked Personal and Confidential. The main objective of this process is to have each office receive their ledger statements for the
month just ended by the 10th of the following month.
The Department also prepares the forms required by the Department of Treasury
for stop payments. Stop payments are requested by employees who have not received salary or expense reimbursements, and vendors claiming non-receipt of expense checks. During this year, the A/P Disbursement Supervisor and the Accounts
Payable Manager continued using the Department of Treasurys Financial Management Service (FMS) online stop pay and check retrieval process known as PACER.
The PACER system allows us to electronically submit stop-payment requests and
provides on-line access to digital images of negotiated checks for viewing and printing. Once a check is viewed, it is printed and may be scanned. Scanned images are
then forwarded to the appropriate accounting locations via e-mail. This process has
been well received by Senate offices and vendors. This saves time and significantly
reduces reliance on the postal system. Accounts Payable Disbursements staff have
Treasury secure ID cards and are trained in the use of PACER. Given the time and
money savings, as well as the overwhelmingly positive reception, large growth in
the use of PACER for check retrieval purposes is anticipated.
The Disbursements Department continues the use of laser checks. The tractor-fed
check writer system has been dismantled and a new, improved system was developed and implemented. The previously ordered folder/inserter was purchased and
has been installed. In addition to the new folder/inserter, the replacement was comprehensive in scope. New hardware was introduced and further check writer upgrades are scheduled for 2006. The result is a user friendly system which has the
additional benefits of greater security and higher degree of accuracy. Only certain
key personnel have access to the signature fonts which are specific to each individual, and print quality has been significantly improved.
Work continues on the reconciliation of the replacement check account. A team
was formed consisting of the Deputy for Financial Management, Accounts Payable
Manager, Chief Accountant, Accounts Payable Disbursements Supervisor and Staff
Accountants. Persistent and determined revenue collection procedures have resulted
in the elimination of all but one unresolved item.
ACCOUNTS PAYABLE
AUDIT DEPARTMENT

The Accounts Payable Audit Section is responsible for auditing vouchers and answering questions regarding voucher preparation and the permissibility of expenses
and advances. This section provides advice and recommendations on the discretionary use of funds to the various accounting locations, identifies duplicate payments submitted by offices, monitors payments related to contracts, trains Administrative Managers and Chief Clerks about Senate financial practices, trains Administrative Managers in the use of the Senates Financial Management Information System, and assists in the production of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.
A major function of the Section is to monitor the Fund Advance Tracking System
(FATS) to ensure that advances are charged correctly, vouchers repaying such advances are entered, and balances are adjusted for reuse of the advance funds. An
aging process is also performed to ensure that travel advances are repaid in the
time specified by the advance travel regulations. Travel advances may be repaid via
regular voucher processing, or may be canceled if the corresponding travel is not
taken.
The Accounts Payable Audit Section, currently a group of 13, has the responsibility for the daily processing of expense claims submitted by the 140 accounting locations of the Senate. The section processed in excess of 145,000 expense vouchers
in fiscal year 2005, as well as 23,000 uploaded items. The voucher processing ranged
in scope from providing interpretation of Senate rules, regulations and statute, ap-

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plying the same to expense claims, monitoring of contracts and direct involvement
with the Senates central vendor file. On average, vouchers greater than $100 that
do not have any issues or questions are received, audited, sanctioned by Rules and
paid by Disbursing within 10 business days of receipt.
Uploaded items are of two varieties, certified expenses and vendor payments. Certified expenses include items such as stationery, telecommunications, postage, and
equipment. Charges incurred by the various Senate offices are certified to Disbursing on a monthly basis. As an example, the Keeper of Stationery tracks all expenditures for each office, and sends a voucher certifying the expenses incurred over
the previous month. The expenses are detailed on a spreadsheet which is also electronically uploaded. The physical voucher is audited and appropriate revisions are
made. The revisions are transferred into the uploaded spreadsheet which is then
used to effect payment to the Keeper. Concentrated effort is put forth to ensure certified items appear as paid in the same month they are incurred.
Vendor uploads are fairly new, and are used to pay vendors for the Stationery
Room, Senate Gift Shop, State office rentals, and refunds of security deposits for the
Page School. The methodology is roughly the same as for certifications, but the payments rendered are for the individual vendors. Although these items are generally
processed and paid quickly, the State Office rents are generally paid a few days
prior to the month of the rental in keeping with a general policy of paying rent in
advance.
During fiscal year 2004, the Chairman of the Committee on Rules and Administration increased the delegated sanctioning authority for vouchers from $35 or less
to $100 or less. These vouchers comprise approximately 60 percent of all vouchers
processed. The responsibility for sanctioning rests with the Certifying Accounts Payable Specialists and are received, audited, and paid within 5 business days of receipt. Disbursing passed two post-payment audits performed by the Rules Committee.
The Accounts Payable Audit Group provided training sessions in the use of new
systems, the process for generation of expense claims, the permissibility of an expense, and participated with seminars sponsored by the Secretary of the Senate, the
Sergeant at Arms, and the Library of Congress. The Section trained 14 new Administrative Managers and Chief Clerks and conducted 5 informational sessions for
Senate staff through seminars sponsored by the Congressional Research Service.
The Accounts Payable group also routinely assists the IT department and other
groups as necessary in the testing and implementation of the new hardware, software, and system applications. Web FMIS version 9 was in use for most of the year
with the electronic, importable expense summary report (ESR). The electronic ESR
has gained widespread acceptance and Web FMIS version 10 was installed in September. Extensive testing is anticipated for the release of Web FMIS version 10.3
in fiscal year 2006.
A cancellation process was established for advances in 2004. This was necessary
to ensure repayment of advances systematically for canceled or postponed travel in
accordance with Senate travel regulations. Advance procedures including cancellation were formally incorporated into the Policies and Procedures Manual. Although
procedures are in place, enhancement is necessary and is expected in a later release
of Web FMIS. Cancellation of other Web vouchers is also scheduled for testing during a later system release. The A/P sections within the Polices and Procedures Manual continue to be updated and revised as new policies, regulations, and system
functionality enhancements dictate.
BUDGET DEPARTMENT

The third component of the Disbursing Office Financial Management Group is the
Budget Department. The primary responsibility of the Budget Department is to
compile the annual operating budget of the United States Senate for presentation
to the Committee on Appropriations. The Budget Department is responsible for the
preparation, issuance and distribution of the budget justification worksheets (BJW).
In fiscal year 2005, the budget justification worksheets were processed in December.
The budget baseline estimates for fiscal year 2006 were reported to the Office of
Management and Budget in January.
This department is also responsible for the formulation, presentation and execution of the budget for the Senate and provides a wide range of analytical, technical
and advisory functions related to the budget process. The Budget Department acts
as the Budget Officer for the Office of the Secretary, assisting in the preparation
of testimony for the hearings before the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Rules and Administration.

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During January, the Senate Budget Analyst is responsible for the preparation of
1099s and the prompt submission of forms to the IRS before the end of the month.
DISBURSING OFFICE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

The Disbursing Office Information Technology (IT) Department provides both

functional and technical assistance for all Senate financial management activities.
Activities revolve around support of the Senates Financial Management Information System (FMIS) which is used by approximately 140 Senate accounting locations
(i.e., 100 Senators offices, 20 Committees, 20 Leadership and Support offices, the
Rules Committee Audit section, and the Disbursing Office). Responsibilities include:
Supporting current systems;
Testing infrastructure changes;
Managing and testing new system development;
Planning;
Managing the FMIS project, including contract management;
Administering the Disbursing Offices Local Area Network (LAN); and
Coordinating the Disbursing Offices disaster recovery activities.
Work during 2005 was supported by the Sergeant at Arms Technology Services
staff, the Secretarys Information Technology staff, and contracts with Bearing
Point.
The SAA Technology Services staff provides the technical infrastructure, including
hardware (mainframe and servers), operating system software (mainframe and servers), database software, and telecommunications; technical assistance for these components, including migration management, and database administration; and regular batch processing. Bearing Point is responsible, under the contract with the
SAA, for operational support, and under contract with the Secretary, for application
development. The Disbursing Office is the business owner of FMIS and is responsible for making the functional decisions about FMIS. The three organizations work
cooperatively.
Highlights of the year include:
Implementation of six releases of Web FMIS. Combined, these releases took
FMIS to the zero-client platform, an important milestone in providing this
critical system in a disaster situation. By the end of April 2005 all Web FMIS
users were using the intranet version of Web FMIS;
Implementation of a release of SAVI that enables Macintosh computer users to
use this system;
Support of the Rules Committees post payment audit for the Rules Committee
Audit to conduct a statistically valid sample of vouchers of $100 and under for
which sanctioning was delegated to the Financial Clerk;
Upgrading our e-mail to Active Directory;
Coordinating and participating in the FMIS portion of a disaster recovery exercise for the Alternate Computing Facility; and
Conducting monthly classes and seminars on Web FMIS.
FMIS is not a single computer system. It is composed of many subsystems that
provide Senate-specific functionality. These subsystems are outlined in the table
that begins on the following page.

Preparation of vouchers, travel advances,

vouchers from advance documents, credit
documents and simple commitment and obligation documents.
Entry of detailed budget
Reporting functions (described below)
Electronic document submission and review
functions
Administrative functions
Tracks travel advances and petty cash advances (available to Committees only).
Tracks election cycle information
Selects a random sample of vouchers for
which sanctioning was delegated to the Financial Clerk for the Rules Committee to
use in conducting a post payment audit.
As currently implemented, provides self-service
access (via the Senates intranet) to payment information for employees receiving reimbursements.
Administrative functions

Web FMIS (Intranet) ...................................................................

SAVI (Intranet) ............................................................................

Post Payment Voucher Audit (PC-based) ...................................

FATS (PC-based) .........................................................................

Checkwriter (Client-server) .........................................................

ADPICS (Mainframe) ...................................................................

Functionality

General ledger ....................................................

Vendor file
Administrative functions
Security functions
Preparation of requisition, purchase order,
voucher from purchase order, and direct
voucher documents.
Electronic document review functions
Administrative functions
Prints checks and check registers as well as
ACH (Automated Clearing House) direct deposit transmission payments.

Subsystem

FAMIS (Mainframe) .....................................................................

Off the shelf system purchased from

Bearing Point.

Excel spreadsheet developed by Bearing Point.

Developed by SAA Technology Services.

Off the shelf state government system

purchased from and adapted to
Senates requirements by Bearing
Point.
Custom software developed under Senate contract by Bearing Point.

Off the shelf federal system purchased

from Bearing Point.

Off the shelf federal system purchased

from Bearing Point.

Source

SENATE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

Primary Users

Senate employees .....................

Rules Committee .......................

Disbursing Office

Disbursing Office ......................

All Senators offices ..................

All Committee offices
All Leadership and Support offices
Secretary of the Senate
Sergeant at Arms
Disbursing Office

Disbursing Office ......................

Sergeant at Arms ......................

Disbursing Office
Secretary of the Senate

Disbursing Office ......................

Implementation

PilotSpring 2002
Senate-wide July
2002

Spring 2003

Spring 1983

October 1999
Client Server
August 2004
Intranet

October 1998

October 1998

October 1998

100

Secretarys Report (Mainframe extracts, crystal reports, and

client-server tool box).
Ledger Statements (Mainframe database extracts, and crystal
reports).
Web FMIS Reports (mainframe database extracts, crystal reports, and Intranet).

Online ESR (Intranet) .................................................................

A component of SAVI through which Senate

employees can create on-line Travel/NonTravel Expense Summary Reports and submit them electronically to the Administrative
Manager/Chief Clerk for processing.
Produces the Report of the Secretary of the
Senate.
Produces monthly reports from FAMIS that are
sent to all Senate accounting locations.
Produces a large number of reports from Web
FMIS, FAMIS and ADPICS data at summary
and detailed levels. Data is updated as an
overnight process and can be updated
through an on-line process by accounting
locations.
Custom software developed under contract by Bearing Point.
Developed by SAA Technology Services.
Custom software developed under contract by Bearing Point.

Custom software developed under contract by Bearing Point.

Winter 1999

Disbursing Office ......................

Senate Accounting Locations
Senate Accounting Locations ....

October 1999Client Server

April 2005
Intranet

Spring 1999

April 2003

Disbursing Office ......................

Senate employees .....................

101

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Supporting Current Systems
The IT section supports FMIS users in all 140 accounting locations, the Disbursing Office Accounts Payable, Accounting, Disbursements and Front Office Sections, and the Rules Committee Audit staff. The activities associated with this responsibility include:
User supportprovide functional and technical support to all Senate FMIS
users; staff the FMIS help desk; and meet with Chiefs of Staff, Administrative
Managers, Chief Clerks, and various Senate offices as requested;
Technical problem resolutionensure that technical problems are resolved;
Monitor system performancecheck system availability and statistics to identify system problems and coordinate performance tuning activities for parallel
load and database access optimization;
Securitymaintains user rights for all ADPICS, FAMIS, SAVI, and Web FMIS
users;
System administrationdesign, test and make entries to tables that are intrinsic to the system;
Support of Accounting Activitiesprovide assistance in the cyclic accounting
system activities such as rollover, the process by which tables for the new fiscal
year are created, and archiving and purging for the current year tables data for
lapsed fiscal years;
Support the Rules Committee post payment voucher audit process; and
Trainingprovide functional training to all Senate FMIS users.
Of these, the post payment voucher audit deserves recognition. In December of
2002, the Rules Committee delegated to the Financial Clerk the authority for sanctioning vouchers of $35 and less; effective January 1, 2004 this threshold increased
to $100. The authorization directed Rules and Disbursing to establish a set of procedures for a semi-annual audit of these vouchers. The two offices agreed that Rules
would conduct a random sampling inspection of these vouchers based on industry
statistical standards. Under the supervision of the IT Group, Bearing Point created
tools to determine the sample size, to enable selecting the sample from the universe
of vouchers of $100 and less, and to determine the acceptable number of discrepancies given the sample size and the desired confidence interval. Both audits conducted in 2005 resulted in a favorable finding of zero discrepancies. The audit conducted in April 2005 for the six-month period ending March 31, 2005, covered
24,643 vouchers and the audit conducted in October 2005 for the six-month period
ending September 30, 2005, covered 29,013 vouchers, an overall increase of 21 percent in the number of vouchers of $100 and less that were processed during fiscal
year 2005.
Testing Infrastructure Changes
The SAA provides the infrastructure on which FMIS operates, including the mainframe, the database, security hardware and software, the telecommunications network, and a hardware and software installation crew. During 2005 the mainframe
operating system was upgraded to the Z/OS operating system. This required that
the Disbursing Office test all FMIS subsystems in a testing environment and verify
all FMIS subsystems in the production environment after Z/OS was implemented.
Managing and Testing New System Development
During 2005, we supervised development, performed extensive integration system
testing and implemented changes to the following FMIS subsystems: Web FMIS;
Senate Vendor Information (SAVI) and Online ESR; and Checkwriter.
Web FMIS
Over the last two years, updates and simplification of the underlying technology
of Web FMIS has occurred, basically replacing all Visual Basic Client/Server and
Cold Fusion Web technology with WebSphere web pages thereby creating a thin
client application that can be accessed via an intranet browser. In August 2004,
Web FMIS r9.0 for pilot offices was implemented, which is a complete rewriting of
the Web FMIS functionality using all intranet based pages. By the end of April, all
Web FMIS users were using the intranet version of Web FMIS. During 2005, Web
FMIS was improved and augmented in the following releases:
Web FMIS r9.1.Implemented in November 2004, addressed additional
functionality identified by the pilot offices. This was provided to new offices of
the 109th Congress.
Web FMIS 10.0.Implemented in February 2005, added a security certificate
to the Web FMIS web site (i.e., adding the S to https://webfmis.senate.gov)
and changed the extracts for the nightly Web FMIS reporting cycle to use tabledriven parameters rather than hard-coded ones.

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Web FMIS 10.1.Implemented in April 2005, provided report and document
printing via Adobe, standard Senate software, rather than Web FMIS-specific
files. This completed moving Web FMIS to the zero-client platform, an important milestone in providing critical systems in a disaster situation. With this
release the Rules Committee Audit staff moved from client-server based screen
to intranet-based pages for their functions, and Disbursing staff began using
standard notepad text to document corrections made to vouchers. Additionally,
this release addressed performance issues resulting from r10.0.
Web FMIS r10.2.Implemented in July 2005 focused on additional functionality
for the Office, including new pages for the Disbursing Inbox and Document Review functions, and enhancements to the Advice of Change process and streamlined the document approval process.
Web FMIS r10.2.1.Implemented in October 2005, fixed bugs in the Disbursing
functions.
Web FMIS r10.3Implemented in January 2006 (but included here because
most of the work on the release was done in 2005), updated the technology for
and provided more functionality on the inbox pages and the travel reimbursement mileage rate maintenance page. Additional functionality was added to the
Documents/Create page and the Budget page, and bugs were fixed.
During 2005, work continued with Bearing Point to define the requirements for
additional functionality required for the two Web FMIS releases planned for 2006:
Web FMIS r11.Planned for Spring 2006, will add the ability to import invoice data from an outside vendor in order to create a voucher with minimal
re-typing. (This process is similar to the import process by which data from
an online ESR, created via SAVI, is used to create a travel voucher.
Web FMIS r12.Planned for late Fall 2006, will be a pilot of paperless voucher
processing, which requires adding electronic signature and documentation imaging functionality.
Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry (SAVI) and Online ESR
SAVI enables Senate staff to check the status of reimbursements, whether via
check or direct deposit referencing an on-line ESR. The Online ESR function enables
Senate staff to create expense summary reports, both travel and non-travel. These
documents can be imported into Web FMIS, reducing the data entry tasks for
voucher preparation. The SAVI system was upgraded once in 2005. Release 3.2, implemented in May 2005, enabled use of SAVI by Macintosh computer users.
Checkwriter
The Disbursing Office makes payments via direct deposit and via check using the
Checkwriter software. No changes were implemented to the Checkwriter software
in 2005, but Checkwriter release 6, which rewrites the security component, will be
tested in early 2006, with implementation tentatively scheduled for summer 2006.
Planning
The Disbursing Office IT group performs two main planning activities:
Schedule coordinationplanning and coordinating a rolling 12-month schedule;
and
Strategic planningsetting the priorities for further system enhancements.
Schedule Coordination
In 2005, two types of meetings were held among Disbursing, SAA and Bearing
Point staff to coordinate schedules and activities. These are:
Project specific meetingsa useful set of project specific working meetings, each
of which has a weekly set meeting time and meets for the duration of the
project (e.g., Document Purge meetings and Web FMIS requirements meetings);
and
Technical meetinga weekly meeting among the DO staff (IT and functional),
SAA Technical Services staff, and Bearing Point to discuss active projects, including scheduling activities and resolving issues.
Strategic Planning
The FMIS strategic plan has a longer time horizon than the rolling 12-month time
frame of the technical meeting schedule. It is designed to set the direction and priorities for further enhancements. In 2002 a five-year strategic plan was written by the
IT and Accounting staff for Disbursing Office Strategic Initiatives. This detailed description of five strategic initiatives formed the base for the Secretary of the Senates request for $5 million in multi-year funds for further work on the FMIS
project. The five strategic initiatives are:

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Paperless VouchersImaging of Supporting Documentation and Electronic Signatures.Beginning with a feasibility study and a pilot, implement new technology, including imaging and electronic signatures, that will reduce the Senates dependence on paper vouchers. This will enable continuation of voucher
processing operations from any location, should an emergency occur;
Web FMISRequests from Accounting Locations.Respond to requests from the
Senates Accounting Locations for additional functionality in Web FMIS;
Payroll SystemRequests from Accounting Locations.Respond to requests
from the Senates Accounting Locations for on-line real time access to payroll
data;
Accounting Subsystem Integration.Integrate Senate-specific accounting systems, improve internal controls, and eliminate errors caused by re-keying of
data; and
CFO Financial Statement Development.Provide the Senate with the capacity
to produce auditable financial statements that will obtain an unqualified opinion.
Managing the FMIS Project
The responsibility for managing the FMIS project was transferred to the IT group
during the summer of 2003 and includes developing the task orders with contractors, overseeing their work, and reviewing invoices. In 2005 one new task order, the
fiscal year 2006 Extended Operational Support was executed. In addition, work continued under two task orders executed in prior years: Web FMIS r10; SAA Finance
System and Reporting Enhancements; and Web FMIS Imaging and Digital Signature Design and Electronic Invoicing and Remittance Enhancements.
Administering the Disbursing Offices Local Area Network (LAN)
The Disbursing Office administers its own Local Area Network (LAN), which is
separate from the LAN for the rest of the Secretarys office. Our LAN Administrators activities included: Office-wide LAN Maintenance and Upgrade; and Projects
for the Payroll and Benefits Section.
Office-wide LAN Maintenance and Upgrade
Existing workstations were maintained with appropriate upgrades, including: an
e-mail upgrade to Active Directory; the addition of SNAP servers to backup,
nightly, our office data in Disbursing and directly to the Offices space at the ACF;
work with the SAA staff to upgrade our network speed to 100 mps; and the maintenance of the Office Information Authorization form log which provides easy access
from Disbursing staff desktops to up-to-date information about the authorized contacts for each Senate office.
Projects for Payroll and Employee Benefits Sections
The Payroll/Benefits imaging system, developed by SAA staff, and which captures
and indexes payroll documents electronically, continues to be supported. This is a
critical system for Payroll and Employee Benefits sections.
Coordinating the Disbursing Offices Disaster Recovery Activities
On Saturday, December 3, 2005, the Sergeant at Arms technical staff conducted
a disaster recovery test of the Senates computing facilities, including the Financial
Management Information System (FMIS) functions. The test involved switching the
Senates network from accessing systems at the Primary Computing Facility (PCF)
to our backup facility, and powering down the PCF.
The SAAs primary purpose was to test the technical process of switching to our
backup facility, and only a limited amount of time was available for functional testing. The SAA staff wanted to complete the exercise within a 12-hour window, including the time needed to switch us to the backup facility and back to the PCF.
A two-hour functional testing window was expected. In the scenario, FMIS systems
and data would be failed-over to the backup facility, and made available for testing during the functional testing window. The systems would then be failed back
to the PCF, but the data would not be failed back. Consequently, any changes
made while testing at the backup facility would not be made to production data.
Disbursing staff set minimal goals of accessing all critical FMIS subsystems. In
a two hour functional testing window, the SAA would not have time to run critical
batch processes such as those which would enable a single document to be taken
from data entry in Web FMIS through payment in FAMIS. Consequently, plans
were made to test each on-line step in the process separately. Additionally, the time
constraint did not allow any overnight batch processes to be run.
Within the limited scope of the test, most of the critical components of FMIS were
tested. A request has been made to the SAA that disaster recovery tests be con-

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ducted twice a year and that additional system components be tested at each successive event.
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES
1. CONSERVATION AND PRESERVATION

The Office of Conservation and Preservation develops and coordinates programs

directly related to the conservation and preservation of Senate records and materials for which the Secretary of the Senate has statutory authority. This includes:
deacidification of paper and prints, phased conservation for books and documents,
collection surveys, exhibits, and matting and framing for the Senate Leadership.
Over the past year, the Office of Conservation and Preservation has embossed 621
books and matted and framed 532 items for the Senate Leadership. In addition, this
office matted and framed 349 items for the 55th Inaugural ceremonies. For more
than twenty-four years, the office has bound a copy of Washingtons Farewell Address for the annual Washingtons Farewell Address ceremony. In 2005, a volume
was bound and read by Senator Richard Burr.
As mandated in the 1990 Senate Library Collection Condition Survey, the Office
of Conservation and Preservation continues to conduct an annual treatment of books
identified by the survey as needing conservation or repair. In 2005, conservation
treatments were completed for 139 volumes of a 7,000 volume collection of House
hearings. Specifically, treatment involved recasing each volume as required, using
alkaline end sheets, replacing acidic tab sheets with alkaline paper, cleaning the
cloth cases, and replacing black spine title labels of each volume as necessary. The
Office of Conservation and Preservation will continue preservation of the remaining
3,900 volumes.
This office assisted the Senate Library with 531 books that were sent to the Library Binding section of the Government Printing Office (GPO) for binding. Additionally, the office worked with the Library to facilitate the creation of five exhibits
located in the Senate Russell building basement corridor. The Office of Conservation
and Preservation also assisted the Senate Curators staff with special matting and
framing required for the World War II exhibit located on the first floor of the Capitol.
This office continues to assist Senate offices with conservation and preservation
of documents, books, and various other items. For example, the office is currently
monitoring the temperature and humidity in the Senate Library storage areas, the
vault and warehouse for preservation and conservation purposes.
2. CURATOR

The Office of Senate Curator, on behalf of the Senate Commission on Art, develops and implements the museum and preservation programs for the United States
Senate. The Office collects, preserves, and interprets the Senates fine and decorative arts, historic objects, and specific architectural features; and exercises supervisory responsibility for the historic chambers in the Capitol under the jurisdiction
of the Commission. Through exhibitions, publications, and other programs, the Office educates the public about the Senate and its collections.
Collections: Commissions, Acquisitions, and Management
A painting of Senator George Mitchell was officially unveiled on May 24, 2005 as
part of the Senate Leadership Portrait Collection, and a painting of Senator Margaret Chase Smith was unveiled on October 18. Both ceremonies were held in the
historic Old Senate Chamber. Other important commissioned works in progress include a portrait of Senator Bob Dole and the Great Compromise mural. Both are
projected to be completed in 2006.
Thirty-eight objects were accessioned into the Senate Collection, including the
painting Portrait of a Child with Moth by Constantino Brumidi; several rare
stereoviews of the Senate Chamber from the late 19th century; tickets, passes, and
luncheon items related to the 2005 Presidential Inauguration; ephemera from the
200th anniversary celebration of the birth of Constantino Brumidi; and nine albums
with images of Senators and Senate staff from the late 18th to the early 20th centuries. One of the nine albums contains rare cabinet cards depicting the 41st Congress made by the Matthew Brady studio, along with autographs of 73 Senators.
In an ongoing effort to locate and recover historic Senate pieces associated with
the institution, the Office acquired for the Senate Collection an important painting
and a 19th century chair. The painting, Signing of the First Treaty of Peace with
Great Britain by Constantino Brumidi, is the original sketch for the mural that appears in the Brumidi Corridors above the entrance to S118. The chair dates to
about 1819 and was made by Thomas Constantine for the Senate Chamber. It is

106
a noteworthy addition to the collection, as only 4 of the original 48 chairs made by
Constantine for the Senate are known to exist.
Fifty new foreign gifts were reported to the Select Committee on Ethics and transferred to the Curators Office. They were catalogued, and are maintained by the Office in accordance with the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act. Appropriate disposition of 28 objects in the collection was completed following established procedures.
As construction continues on the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC), the Office has
worked with a conservator specializing in museum facility planning to develop a collection storage plan for all objects scheduled to move to the designated curatorial
storage rooms in the CVC. The plan includes detailed equipment layout and design
in order to provide optimal preservation for storing the objects.
The Curators Office continued with its project to photograph the 102 historic Senate Chamber desks (which includes the 100 on the Senate floor and two desks currently in storage). One set of transparencies will be stored off-site for emergency
purposes, while a second working set will be used for the web, image requests, and
future publications. Fifty-five desks were photographed in 2005; the project is ahead
of schedule and is projected to be completed by August 2006.
In keeping with established procedures, all Senate Collection objects on display
were inventoried, noting any changes in location. In addition, as directed by S. Res.
178, the Office submitted inventories of the art and historic furnishings in the Senate to the Rules Committee. The inventories, to be submitted every six months, are
compiled by the Curators Office with assistance from the Senate Sergeant at Arms
(SAA) and Architect of the Capitol (AOC) Senate Superintendent.
Conservation and Restoration
A total of 20 objects received conservation treatment in 2005. These included nine
Senate Chamber desks, eight oil on canvas paintings, two cabinet card albums, and
one manuscript collection.
The initiative to conserve all 100 historic Senate Chamber desks, which began in
1999, was completed. Twice a year, during Senate recess periods, desks were removed from the Senate Chamber and sent out for restoration. Treatment was extensive, and followed a detailed protocol developed to address the wear and degradation
of these historic desks due to continued heavy use. In December, the last of the
desks was restored. During this project, a condition survey was conducted and completed. The survey emphasized the necessity of installing rubber bumpers to the
arms of the Senate Chamber chairs to minimize the damage to the front of the
desks caused by the chair arms. That work was also completed this year, and all
future chairs will be constructed with bumpers.
After extensive evaluation and research, a scope of work was developed for the
conservation of the portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart in the Senate
Collection. This project coincided with a major exhibition on Stuarts work at the
National Gallery of Art, which afforded the opportunity to consult with experts in
the field. The portrait was restored by conservators with extensive knowledge of Gilbert Stuarts paintings; and the frame was also conserved. Restoration has revealed
the Senates portrait to be among the finest of Stuarts paintings of the first president.
Two recently commissioned paintings, Blanche Kelso Bruce and James O. Eastland, were varnished by conservators to enhance and protect the surfaces now that
the paint has properly cured.
Another conservation project was related to the microfilming and digitization of
the Isaac Bassett Papers, the manuscript collection of a 19th century Senate employee. Prior to microfilming, a conservator carried out the treatment and re-housing of the papers necessary for preservation. The entire effort to microfilm and
digitize the collection was completed by the fall of 2005, and will help preserve the
original papers in case of disaster, as well as provide reproductions for the use of
scholars and other researchers. In addition, the digitized images provided extensive
material for the Isaac Bassett website exhibit.
The Office completed the detailed condition and identification survey of the nearly
100 historic mirrors in the Senate wing. The project has significant benefits. The
condition assessments will determine priorities for conservation and maintenance
treatments; provide information on the age, origin, and importance of the frames;
and furnish documentation for disaster planning.
The Curators staff participated in training sessions for the Capitol Police regarding the care and protection of art in the Capitol, and continued to educate housekeeping personnel on maintenance issues related to the fine and decorative art collections.

107
Historic Preservation
The Curators Office worked with the AOC and SAA to review, comment, plan,
and document Senate side construction projects that involve or impact historic resources. In addition to receiving planning information from those organizations, the
office initiated a procedure for sharing Curator project schedules. This has greatly
improved coordination and project execution. Construction and conservation efforts
that required considerable review and assistance included: Brumidi Corridor ceiling
restoration near S112; window shutter refinishing; grand stairwell plaster replacement; marble step repair; Brumidi west corridor egress installation; Minton tile replacement; wireless antenna installation; audio alert system; S324 ceiling recreation; and S229 renovation.
As part of the S229 renovation project, there was a request to provide an overmantel mirror for the room. The Office has developed a mirror replication project,
to duplicate an historic mirror in the Capitol. The mirror selected for replication was
a good example of a particular style, complements the majority of mantels and
spaces in the Capitol, and will easily accommodate modifications of size and ornament in any future replications. The new mirror was created and installed.
Requests from Senate offices for information pertaining to room histories, architectural features, and historic images continue to increase. Recent initiatives have
greatly improved office response time and depth of knowledge. In addition, the Office is working in partnership with the AOC Curators Office and the Senate Historical Office to develop a room history program that will produce a definitive and upto-date history for significant Senate rooms and suites.
Research projects undertaken this year included: the Assistant Democratic Leaders suite; the Democratic Leaders suite; and the Strom Thurmond Room, S238.
Additionally, the Office worked closely with the AOC in the creation of an historic
structures report for the Senate vestibule, adjacent stairwell, and small Senate rotunda. This report provides critical documentation regarding the architectural chronology of these important historic spaces.
Historic Chambers
The Curators staff continued to maintain the Old Senate and Old Supreme Court
Chambers, and coordinated periodic use of both rooms for special occasions. By
order of the U.S. Capitol Police, the Old Senate Chamber was closed to visitors after
September 11, 2001. However, during Senate recesses the historic room is open to
tours. Thirty-six requests were received from current Members of Congress for afterhours access to the Chamber. Of special significance was the reenactment swearingin ceremony for the newly elected Senators of the 109th Congress. Twenty-nine requests were received by current Members of Congress for admittance to the Old Supreme Court Chamber after-hours. Images of the room were provided to the Supreme Court Historical Society for use on a bicentennial coin honoring Chief Justice
John Marshall. In addition, C-SPAN used high definition equipment in both chambers to take footage for an historical documentary on the U.S. Capitol, and both
rooms were photographed for the CVC interactive exhibitions.
In order to enhance existing documentation and to provide an important resource
for future planning, the Office is working closely with the AOC to create condition
drawings of the Old Senate Chamber that meet the Historic American Building Survey (HABS) standard. Currently such detailed drawings do not exist for this chamber, or any space within the Capitol, yet this is important historical and archival
documentation. When complete, the drawings will be accepted into the HABS national collection at the Library of Congress.
The Office continued to research the origins of one of the Senates most important
art works, the Eagle and Shield, in the Old Senate Chamber. This gilded carving,
which dates from the early 19th century, has long been an important symbol of the
institution. Initial research focused on the style and construction of carved eagles
contemporary with the Senate. In addition, contacts were made with museums that
house such eagles for further research.
Loans To and From the Collection
A total of 68 historic objects and paintings are currently on loan to the Curators
Office on behalf of Senate leadership and officials in the Capitol. The staff added
loans of six paintings for leadership suites, returned five paintings at the expiration
of their loan periods to their respective owners, and renewed loan agreements for
29 other objects.
The Office continued to document, photograph, and prepare various Senate Collection objects planned for exhibition in the CVC. Several of the objects (from an oil
painting to a silver snuff box) will require conservation prior to installation in the
exhibit hall, and the Curators office is assisting in this conservation.

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Since 1982 the Senate has loaned a major historical painting, The Battle of Chapultepec by James Walker, to the Marine Corps Historical Museum in Washington,
D.C. Originally the painting was displayed in the West Grand Stairway of the Senate wing from 1858 until 1961. The Marine Corps relocated to a new museum facility in 2005, terminating the Senate loan. Given the paintings size, the Curators
Office was tasked to identify another location for the painting. This historic work
will be relocated to the Thomas Gilcrease Institute of American History and Art in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, in early 2006. The Gilcrease Museum will provide an excellent
venue for continued public display of the painting within the context of the history
of the southwest region of the country. Development of a plan to safely remove the
painting from display and transport it to its new location was greatly enhanced by
consultation with the conservator on the Senate Curatorial Advisory Board.
The Secretarys china was distributed and returned four times in 2005. It was
used for the Inaugural luncheon, as well as the First Ladys luncheon. The inventory was increased with the acquisition of 85 cups and saucers. The official Senate
china was inventoried and used at 41 receptions for distinguished guests.
Publications and Exhibitions
The Curators Office finalized the content and design for the United States Senate
Catalogue of Graphic Art. The publication is scheduled for 2006. The volume features the Senates collection of more than 900 historic engravings and lithographs,
and includes two full-length essays and almost 40 short essays discussing selected
prints. The Senate Curator and Associate Senate Historian co-authored the publication. It is a companion volume to the United States Senate Catalogue of Fine Art,
published in 2003.
As part of an ongoing program to provide information about the Capitols art and
historic spaces, three new information panels were installed for the following paintings: The Florida Case before the Electoral Commission; The Battle of Lake Erie; and
First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Lincoln.
In July 2005, to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of artist
Constantino Brumidi, the office de-installed the popular photographic exhibition,
World War II: The Senate and the Nations Capital and installed To Make Beautiful
the Capitol: Birds of the Brumidi Corridors. This exhibition places in context the
myriad of ornithological species that were painted by Brumidi and his team of artists. An online version of the exhibit was also developed for the Senate.gov website.
Several other internet exhibits were posted including, Presidential Inaugurations:
Invitations and Tickets in the U.S. Senate Collection and Inaugural Luncheons. The
Office received delivery of the program files for two major websites, Isaac Bassett:
A Senate Memoir, and The Senate Chamber Desks. Both were developed in conjunction with the Secretarys webmaster and a contractor. Isaac Bassett features selections from the Isaac Bassett manuscript collection, with illustrations from the Senates collection of art and historical objects. It highlights life in the 19th century
Senate based on Bassetts personal observations and recollections. His unique position as a trusted, long-time employee of the Senate and close confidant of many Senators make the stories he included in his memoir both engaging and enlightening.
The website features actual images of Bassetts handwritten notes and an interactive time line.
The Senate Chamber Desks website chronicles the history of these historic furnishings, many of which date back to 1819. Viewers will see where each Senator
sits and learn specific information about each desk: biographical information on the
Senators who have occupied it; conservation and restoration information; and traditions and historical facts. This site will be launched in 2006, and updated at the
beginning of each Congress to provide current information.
Another educational project was the development of an oral history program related to the Senates art and historical collections. Artists were interviewed to gain
valuable knowledge regarding recently commissioned portraits and this information
will be posted on the Senate website in the near future.
Adding to its presence on Senate.gov, the Office published the essays of the 160
pieces of art in the United States Senate Catalogue of Fine Art. Several popular brochures were reprinted in 2005, and the office continued to be a significant contributor to Unum, the Secretary of the Senates newsletter.
Policies and Procedures
Meetings were held with the new Senate Curatorial Advisory Board. Composed
of respected scholars and curators, this 12-member board was established to provide
expert advice to the Commission regarding the Senates art and historic collections
and preservation program, and to assist in the acquisition and review of new objects
for the collections.

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In 2005 the Senate passed legislation codifying the Senate Leadership Portrait
Collection, which honors past majority and minority leaders and presidents pro tempore of the Senate. These portraits are to be commissioned after the leaders have
completed their service. The resolution also provides that the portraits may hang
in the Senate Chamber Lobby at the direction of the Senate.
An electronic tracking system was developed to record progress through the steps
of the accessioning process for new additions to the Senate Collection. The system
allows reports to be generated that identify what types of documentation have been
prepared and what remains to be completed for each new accession.
Collaborations, Educational Programs, and Events
As part of the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of artist
Constantino Brumidi on July 26, 2005, the Curators Office promoted various Senate
activities honoring Brumidi. As well as developing the exhibit on the birds of the
Brumidi Corridors, the Office worked in partnership with Senate and AOC offices
to generate articles and information panels about Brumidis importance and contributions to the Capitol, and to sponsor special tours highlighting the artists work.
The Senate Curator and staff gave lectures on the Senates art and historical collections to various historical societies and art museums, including George Washington University, the Federal Preservation Institute, and the U.S. Capitol Historical Society.
Office Administration
The project to microfiche and digitize the collection object files was completed.
These files are the primary legal title, research, and management records for all art
and historical objects owned by the Senate and maintained by the Commission on
Art. This project also serves important disaster recovery and archival preservation
functions. Copies of the microfiche and digital records will be kept off-site for disaster recovery and archival purposes. Additional copies will be used on-site for research and public information in order to lessen the wear and tear on the original
paper records.
The Senate Support Facility was completed. The Curators Office worked for several years with the Sergeant at Arms to develop a space within the warehouse that
meets the stringent requirements for storing fine and decorative art. Environmental
testing for the museum-quality storage area is now underway, and relocation of collection objects to this space is scheduled for the summer of 2006. The office moved
its non-collection items to the new warehouse, including exhibit and art shipping
materials, and publications. These items were re-inventoried and new tracking numbers assigned.
Automation
The Office continued to improve its electronic collection management database to
provide more efficient and accurate data recording and searches. The addition of
several fields to record inventory location, date, and reviewer is one such change
that improves the information regarding the current and previous locations for objects. The registration department also implemented an electronic tracking system
to improve the accuracy and efficiency of loan renewals.
In addition, the Office researched electronic systems that monitor temperature
and relative humidity, to assure the stability of all objects on display and in storage.
The ideal system will continuously download data for analysis and provide instant
notification via phone, e-mail and/or blackberry when environmental conditions undergo a sudden and potentially damaging change. Staff worked with Senate Security
on the initiative. Procurement and installation of the system may occur in 2006.
In an effort to integrate new technologies, improve research capabilities, and address preservation concerns, the Office is developing an organization plan and procedures that will affect all types of files and media collected and maintained. The results will greatly improve response time to information requests, search capabilities
for researchers, and the condition of significant reference materials. Related to this
effort was the installation of an image management server. This service allows staff
to store the many large-sized image files that are so vital to the Offices mission,
enables the images to be archived regularly, and prevents the immense number of
items from clogging bandwidth time and storage space on the Secretarys LAN servers.
Objectives for 2006
A major initiative will be to relocate Senate Collection items to the new SAA offsite warehouse facility. Work will include: developing an object tracking system; reviewing the SAA warehouse inventory system, access procedures, and protocol; ensuring all equipment, HVAC, and security needs are functioning; coordinating the

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move with the assistance of fine art handlers; and developing a procedural document regarding the storage of collection objects at the SAA warehouse.
The Office also will prepare for moving collection objects in 2007 to the two new
CVC storage spaces. Based on the recently completed Collection Storage Plan, museum-quality storage equipment will be ordered to house collection objects in these
new spaces. Objects in need of archival re-housing will be identified, prioritized, and
re-housed in preparation for the move.
The Curators environmental monitoring systems will be assessed in all locations
where collections are displayed or stored. Temporary systems will be installed for
evaluation, and following testing, a comprehensive program will be recommended
and implemented as appropriate.
An integrated pest management plan will be prepared for all storage spaces where
collection items are located. The plan will include procedures for preparation of objects for storage, monitoring of conditions, and developing contacts and resources for
disaster recovery.
Conservation and preservation concerns continue to be a priority. Projects in 2006
will include the treatment of several historic paintings and frames, as well as objects for new CVC exhibits. The Battle of Chapultepec will be relocated to the
Gilcrease Museum in Oklahoma. The Office will build on the information generated
by the recently completed mirror survey and develop a plan for the conservation and
maintenance of the Senates historic mirror collection. The restoration of the painting, First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation, by F.B. Carpenter, is now projected to be completed in 2006. Additionally, the Office will focus on the Senates
recently acquired Cornelius & Baker armorial chandelier. Following a condition assessment, the office will work with the Senate Curatorial Advisory Board to review
treatment options and recommend a plan for the chandelier to the Commission on
Art.
The Office will advance efforts to commission portraits of Senators Byrd, Lott, and
Daschle. Unveilings are projected for the portrait of former Senator Bob Dole and
the Great Compromise mural.
The Isaac Bassett Papers manuscript collection will be deposited at the National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Initial meetings have been held with
NARA to discuss organization and storage of the collection along with logistical considerations. As a result of the recently completed microfilming project, the office will
submit the original collection, microfilm and digital copies of the papers, and extensive indexes for use by future researchers.
The Curators staff will undertake a comprehensive and detailed survey of the
Senate Chamber chairs. While the Senate Chamber desks have been studied extensively, the accompanying chairs, which date from various eras, have never been
fully examined. It is hoped that this study will enable the identification and preservation of important chairs that still remain in the Senate.
Collection activities will also include efforts to locate and recover significant historic Senate pieces. Investigations were conducted in 2005 to locate partner desks
and other furniture made by George Cobb for the Russell Senate Office building in
1909. A total of twelve desks were identified outside the Senate, and are either in
private collections or on display in museums.
In the area of education, the United States Senate Catalogue of Graphic Art will
be published. The Office will produce a brochure for S238, the Strom Thurmond
Room. Also related to room histories, staff will continue to work with the AOC Curators Office and Senate Historical Office to finalize the room history program.
The Office will embark on a reorganization of the Senate art website to provide
easier, more intuitive access to the Senates art, historical collections, and online exhibits and publications. This task will be undertaken in coordination with Senate
webmaster and Senate Library staff, and will be an important early step in creating
and organizing the Senates web content according to standardized metadata.
The Senate Preservation Board of Trustees will hold its first meeting, and the
Senate Curatorial Advisory Board will continue to meet biannually. The Office will
work with the Senate Curatorial Advisory Board to review and report on several
preservation projects including: the historic structures report for the Senate vestibule, adjacent stairwell, and small Senate rotunda; the preservation of the Minton
tile floors; and the current HABS-standard drawing documentation project.
Work is underway to develop a five-year strategic plan for the Office of Senate
Curator. This will be an important document for the Office as it moves forward with
its many conservation, preservation, and education initiatives. Additionally, the
Senate Curators Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) will be reevaluated, tabletop exercises conducted, and the COOP document updated.

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3. JOINT OFFICE OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

The Joint Office of Education and Training provides employee training and development opportunities for all Senate staff. There are three branches within the department. The technical training branch is responsible for providing technical training support for approved software packages used in either Washington or the state
offices. This branchs computer training staff provides instructor-led classes; one-onone coaching sessions; specialized vendor-provided training; computer-based training; and informal training and support services. The professional training branch
provides courses for all Senate staff in areas including management and leadership
development, human resources issues and staff benefits, legislative and staff information, new staff and intern information. The Health Promotion branch provides
seminars, classes and screenings on health related and wellness issues. This branch
also coordinates an annual Health Fair for all Senate employees and four blood
drives each year.
Training Classes
The Joint Office of Education and Training offered 405 classes in 2005; 5,982 Senate employees participated in these classes. This offices registration desk handled
31,960 requests for training and documentation.
Of the above total, in the Technical Training area 187 classes were held with a
total attendance of 1,521 students. An additional 770 staff received coaching on various software packages and other computer related issues.
In the Professional Development area 218 classes were held with a total attendance of 4,461 students. Individual managers and supervisors are also encouraged to
request customized training for their offices on areas of need.
The Office of Education and Training is available to work with teams on issues
related to team performance, communication or conflict resolution. During 2005,
over 50 requests for special training or team building were met. Professional development staff also traveled to state offices to conduct specialized training and team
building. During the last quarter of the year, we offered training via video teleconferencing to two state offices and plan to continue this practice.
In the Health Promotion area, 1,240 Senate staff participated in Health Promotion activities throughout the year. These activities included: cancer screening,
bone density screening and seminars on health related topics. Additionally 1,492
staff participated in the Annual Health Fair held in September.
The Joint Office of Education and Training has been actively working with the
Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness to provide security training for Senate staff. In 2005, the Office of Education and Training coordinated 63 sessions of
escape hood and other security-related training for 1,010 Senate staff.
State Training
Since most of the classes that are offered are only practical for D.C. based staff,
the Office of Education and Training continues to offer the State Training Fair
which began in March 2000. In 2005, three sessions of this program were offered
to 119 state staff. This office also conducted our annual State Directors Forum for
the second year and 37 attended. In addition, this office has implemented the Virtual Classroom which is an internet based training library of 300 courses. To
date, 379 state office and Washington, D.C. staff are accessing a total of 500 different lessons using this training option.
4. CHIEF COUNSEL FOR EMPLOYMENT

Background
The Office of the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment (SCCE) is a non-partisan
office established at the direction of the Joint Leadership in 1993 after enactment
of the Government Employee Rights Act (GERA), which allowed Senate employees
to file claims of employment discrimination against Senate offices. With the enactment of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (CAA), Senate offices became
subject to the requirements, responsibilities and obligations of 11 employment laws.
The SCCE is charged with legal defense of Senate offices in employment law cases
at both the administrative and court levels. Also, on a day-to-day basis, the SCCE
provides legal advice to Senate offices about their obligations under employment
laws. Accordingly, each employing office of the Senate is an individual client of the
SCCE, and each office maintains an attorney-client relationship with the SCCE.
The areas of responsibilities of the SCCE can be divided into the following categories: Litigation (Defending Senate Offices in Federal Courts); Mediations to Resolve Lawsuits; Court-Ordered Alternative Dispute Resolutions; Union Drives, Negotiations, and Unfair Labor Practice Charges; OSHA/Americans With Disability Act

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(ADA) Compliance; Layoffs and Office Closings In Compliance With the Law; Management Training Regarding Legal Responsibilities; and Preventive Legal Advice.
Litigation; Mediations; Alternative Dispute Resolutions
The SCCE represents each of the employing offices of the Senate in all court actions (including both trial and appellate courts), hearings, proceedings, investigations, and negotiations relating to labor and employment laws. The SCCE handles
cases filed in the District of Columbia and cases filed in any of the 50 states.
OSHA/ADA Compliance
The SCCE provides advice and assistance to Senate offices by assisting them with
complying with the applicable OSHA and ADA regulations; representing them during Office of Compliance inspections; advising State offices on the preparation of the
Office of Compliances Home State OSHA/ADA Inspection Questionnaires; assisting
offices in the preparation of Emergency Action Plans; and advising and representing
Senate offices when a complaint of an OSHA violation has been filed with the Office
of Compliance or when a citation has been issued.
In 2005, the SCCE conducted 131 OSHA/ADA inspections of Senate offices to ensure compliance with the CAA.
Management Training Regarding Legal Responsibilities
The SCCE conducts legal seminars for the managers of Senate offices to assist
them in complying with employment laws.
In 2005, the SCCE gave 56 legal seminars to Senate offices. Among the topics covered were:
An Overview of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995: Managements
Rights and Obligations;
Preventing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace;
How to Interview and Hire the Best Employee Without Violating the Law;
How to Conduct Background Checks, Reference Checks and Drug Testing Without Violating the Law;
Complying with Immigration Laws: I9 and the Basic Pilot Program for Employment Eligibility Confirmation;
Labor-Management Overview: Union Post-Election Procedures;
Complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990;
Managements Legal Obligations to Give Military Leave to Employees;
Legal Pitfalls in Evaluating, Disciplining and Firing Employees;
How to Comply with the Family and Medical Leave Act.
In addition, in 2005, the SCCE prepared new videos to accompany its harassment
seminar. This involved writing the scripts, recruiting Senate employees to participate, training the actors, and working with the Recording Studio to direct, record,
edit and finalize the vignettes. The purpose of the vignettes is to illustrate points
raised during the harassment seminar with examples that are Senate-specific. The
SCCE has received extremely positive feedback from Members offices at which the
harassment seminars have been given using these new videos.
Preventative Legal Advice
The SCCE meets with Members, Chiefs of Staff, Administrative Directors, Office
Managers, Staff Directors, Chief Clerks and General Counsels at their request. The
purposes are to ensure compliance with the law, prevent litigation and minimize liability in the event of litigation. For example, on a daily basis, the SCCE advises
Senate offices on matters such as disciplining and/or terminating employees in compliance with the law, handling and investigating sexual harassment complaints, accommodating the disabled, determining wage law requirements, meeting the requirements of the Family and Medical Leave Act, and managements rights and obligations under union laws and OSHA.
Administrative/Miscellaneous Matters
The SCCE provides legal assistance to employing offices to ensure that their employee handbooks/office policies, supervisors manuals, job descriptions, interviewing
guidelines, and performance evaluation forms comply with the law
Union Drives, Negotiations, and Unfair Labor Practice Charges
In 2005, the SCCE handled one union drive and assisted in negotiations with another union. With respect to the union drive, the SCCE trained managers and supervisors regarding their legal obligations during a union campaign, advised the client in selecting its representatives for the election and conducted training sessions
for the employer representatives regarding proper conduct at elections.

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Layoffs and Office Closings in Compliance with the Law
The SCCE provides advice and strategy to individual Senate offices regarding how
to minimize legal liability in compliance with the law when offices reduce their
forces. In addition, pursuant to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification
Act (WARN Act), offices that are closing must follow certain procedures for notifying
their employees of the closing and for transitioning them out of the office. The SCCE
tracks office closings and notifies those offices of their legal obligations under the
WARN Act.
5. SENATE GIFT SHOP

The Senate Gift Shop was established under administrative direction and supervision of the Secretary of the Senate (SOS) in October 1992, (United States Code,
Title 2, Chapter 4). With each successive year since its establishment the Senate
Gift Shop has continued to provide outstanding products and services that maintain
the integrity of the Senate as well as increase the publics awareness of the mission
and history of the U.S. Senate. The Gift Shop provides products and services to Senators, their spouses, staffs, constituents, and visitors. Products include a wide variety of souvenirs, collectibles and fine gift items created exclusively for the U.S. Senate. Services include special ordering of personalized products, custom framing, gold
embossing, engraving and shipping. Additional services include the distribution of
educational materials to both tourists and constituents visiting the Capitol and Senate Office Buildings. New this year is the Senate Gift Shops presence on Webster.
Facilities
For several years the Senate Gift Shop offered over-the-counter sales to walk-in
customers at a single location. Today, after more than a decade of operation, the
Gift Shop provides products and services from three locations.
In addition to the three physical locations, the Gift Shop has developed an online
presence on Webster. The intranet site currently offers only a limited selection of
products that may be ordered either by phone or by printing and faxing the on-site
order form. Long-term plans are to grow this site to include a greater sample of
merchandise offered in the Gift Shops physical locations and to eventually migrate
to an e-commerce website with online transactions. Along with offering over-thecounter, walk-in sales, and limited intranet services, the Gift Shop Administrative
Office provides mail order service, special order and catalogue sales.
The Gift Shop also maintains two warehouse facilities. While the bulk of its overstock is currently held in an off-site storage facility, a portion of the Gift Shops
overstock is maintained in the Hart Building warehouse facility. This space also accommodates the Gift Shops receiving, shipping, and engraving departments.
Operational plans for the off-site facility include having most, if not all, Gift Shop
product delivered, received and stored at this location until the need for transfer to
Gift Shop locations. Although the overall management of the warehouse is through
the Sergeant at Arms (SAA), the Director of the Gift Shop has responsibility for the
operation and oversight of the interior spaces assigned for Gift Shop use. Storing
inventory in a centralized, climate-controlled facility that is managed by the SAA
will provide better protection for the Gift Shops valuable inventory in terms of increased and steadfast security as well as prolonged shelf life for product.
Sales Activity
Sales recorded for fiscal year 2005 were $1,591,244.36. Cost of goods sold during
this same period was $1,006,655.30, accounting for a gross profit on sales of
$584,589.06.
In addition to tracking gross profit from sales, the Senate Gift Shop maintains
a revolving fund and a record of inventory purchased for resale. As of October 1,
2005, the balance in the revolving fund was $1,833,614.70 and the inventory purchased for resale was valued at $2,295,554.07.
Additional Activity
The contractor selected to provide the hardware and system installation of the
new retail and financial management system has completed its contractual obligations to the Senate Gift Shop with the final deliverables completed in 2005. The contractor will continue to provide hardware and software support for the retail system.
Accomplishments and New Products in Fiscal Year 2005
Official Congressional Holiday Ornaments
The year 2005 marked the conclusion of the Gift Shops third consecutive fouryear ornament series. Each ornament in the 20022005 series of unique collectibles
features an architectural milestone of the United States Capitol and is packaged

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with corresponding historical text taken from the book, History of the United States
Capitol: A Chronicle of Design, Construction, and Politics by William C. Allen, Architectural Historian for the Architect of the Capitol.
The 2005 ornament pictures the Capitols West Front with particular emphasis
on the newly landscaped lawn and terraces. Congress authorized the landscape improvements in 1873, and on June 23, 1874, passed an act to hire the first landscape
architect of the United States Capitol, Frederick Law Olmsted. Olmsteds idea for
redesigning the landscape of the Capitol grounds is illustrated in a drawing titled
General Plan for the Improvement of the Capitol Grounds. In keeping with a Gift
Shop tradition, the authentic colors of the original drawing were reproduced onto
a white porcelain stone and set with a brass frame finished in 24kt gold.
Sales of the 2005 holiday ornament exceeded 32,000 ornaments of which more
than 7,400 were personalized with engravings designed, proofed and etched by Senate Gift Shop staff. This highly successful effort was made possible by the combined
effort of our administrative, engraving, and store staffs. Additional sales of this ornament and ornaments from previous years are expected to continue throughout
2006. Sales revenue from this years ornament, as in previous years, helps to provide scholarship funds for the Senate Child Care Center.
The theme for the Gift Shops fourth series of ornaments, which will run from
20062009, is currently in development with production of the 2006 ornament targeted for this summer and sale of the ornament expected to begin in September
2006.
China Porcelain Boxes
The final porcelain Brumidi box in a set of four was completed and released for
sale in 2005. Each box displays a different image from the Constantino Brumidi
frescoes taken from the ceiling of the Presidents Room in the Senate Wing of the
United States Capitol. The individual boxes of the series include the allegorical figures: Liberty, Legislation, Executive Authority and Religion. These porcelain boxes,
exclusive to the Senate Gift Shop, will be popular collector items for many years
to come.
Projects and New Initiatives for 2006
History of the Capitol
The Gift Shop will purchase for resale the book, History of the Capitol, (H. Doc.
108240) by Glenn Brown. When the GPO publication is released for sale to distributors and retailers in 2006, the Gift Shop plans to purchase a substantial quantity to ensure availability to its customers for an extended period of time.
Congressional Plates
The series of Official Congressional Plates continued in 2005 with new design features beginning with the 108th Congress plate, which became available for sale this
past year. The balance of the series includes plates commemorating the 109th,
110th and 111th Congresses. The design stage for the remaining plates has concluded and prototypes for the final three are being produced by Tiffany & Co.
Constantino Brumidi Birthday Celebration
The year 2005 marked the 200th Birthday of Constantino Brumidi, The Artist
of the Capitol. In celebration of this special occasion, the staff of the Gift Shop
worked closely with the staff of the Curators Office on an initiative to add to our
collection of Brumidi-inspired merchandise. The new products include a designer
collection of note cards depicting images of birds taken from the frescoes gracing the
walls of the Capitols Brumidi corridors. Other products featuring Brumidis artwork
that are currently offered for sale in the Senate Gift Shop include neckties, scarves,
round porcelain boxes and the book Brumidi Artist of the Capitol. Additional
Brumidi pieces are in production.
Intranet/Webster
The Webster intranet website for the Gift Shop continues to be enhanced. Primary
considerations include website policy, design and layout, content and products to be
included. Meetings concerning the creation and expansion of the Gift Shops website
are ongoing with other Secretary departments. The Gift Shops intends to incorporate links to the offices of the Historian, Curator and Senate Library so that visitors to the website will have ready access to additional educational information.
Capitol Complex Lumber
In the fall of 2001 the construction of the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) required
the removal of many trees from the Capitol complex. During this time, Allegany
Wood Products (Allegany) of Petersburg, West Virginia, assisted in determining the

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best method for the recover and transport of the felled trees. Arrangements were
made for a local West Virginia trucking company to travel to Washington, D.C., to
pick up and haul the cut trees to one of Alleganys lumber mills, where the trees
could be rough cut and kiln dried, a process which makes possible the preservation
and long-term storage of the lumber. The stored lumber approximating 12,000 board
feet is now being inventoried and segregated by species. Plans to determine the
most appropriate use for the lumber will be developed this year. Preliminary ideas
involve using a quantity of wood to create official products such as presentation,
gift and commemorative items.
6. HISTORICAL OFFICE

Serving as the Senates institutional memory, the Historical Office collects and
provides information on important events, precedents, dates, statistics, and historical comparisons of current and past Senate activities for use by members and staff,
the media, scholars, and the general public. The Office advises Senators, officers,
and committees on cost-effective disposition of their non-current office files and assists researchers in identifying Senate-related source materials. The Office keeps extensive biographical, bibliographical, photographic, and archival information on the
1,885 former Senators. It edits for publication historically significant transcripts and
minutes of selected Senate committees and party organizations, and conducts oral
history interviews with key Senate staff. The photo historian maintains a collection
of approximately 40,000 still pictures that includes photographs and illustrations of
Senate committees and most former Senators. The Office develops and maintains
all historical material on the Senate website.
Editorial Projects
Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, 17742005.A new edition of the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress has just been published. In May 2003,
both houses of Congress adopted H. Con. Res. 138, authorizing printing of an updated and expanded edition of the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 17742005. The first edition of this indispensable reference source was published in 1859; the most recent edition appeared in 1989. This latest publication is
the 16th edition. Since 1989, the assistant historian has added many new biographical sketches, expanded bibliography entries, and revised and updated most of the
databases nearly 2,000 Senate and vice-presidential entries. In preparation for the
2005 edition, the assistant historian and historical editor updated the Congress-byCongress listing of members through the 108th Congress and updated the listing
of executive branch officers. The assistant historian completed the editing and proofing of all Senate-related information, coordinating with the House Office of History
and Preservation and the Government Printing Office. The assistant historian also
continues to edit and update all existing information for the online version of the
Biographical Directory (http://bioguide.congress.gov) to allow for expanded search capabilities, maintain accuracy, and incorporate new information and scholarship.
Administrative History of the Senate.Throughout 2005, the assistant historian
continued to research and write chapters of this historical account of the Senates
administrative evolution. This study traces the development of the offices of the Secretary of the Senate and Sergeant at Arms, considers 19th and 20th century reform
efforts that resulted in reorganization and professionalization of Senate staff, and
looks at how the Senates administrative structure has grown and diversified over
the past two centuries. In particular, during the past year the assistant historian
completed the works pivotal third chapter, which explores the Senates administrative history from 1836 to 1861, when Asbury Dickins was Secretary of the Senate.
During this period, the first major administrative reform effort was launched, resulting in an expanded and more professional work force.
The Idea of the Senate.For more than two centuries, Senators, journalists,
scholars, and other first-hand observers have attempted to describe the uniqueness
of the Senate, emphasizing the bodys fundamental strengths, as well as areas for
possible reform. From James Madison in 1787 to Robert Caro in 2002, sharp-eyed
analysts have left memorable accounts that may help modern Senators better understand the Senate in its historical context. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Allen
Drurys 1943 comment about the Senate of his dayThere is a vast area of casual
ignorance concerning this lively and appealing bodyretains a ring of truth for
modern times. The Idea of the Senate project will identify up to 40 major statements by knowledgeable observers. Each of the 40 brief chapters in the resulting
publication will include a 500-word quotation and an essay that identifies the background of the observer and places the quotation in the context of the times in which
it was written.

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Rules of the United States Senate, Since 1789.In 1980, Parliamentarian Emeritus Floyd M. Riddick, at the direction of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, prepared a publication containing the eight separate codes of rules
that the Senate adopted between 1789 and 1979. In the early 1990s, the Senate Historical Office, in consultation with Dr. Riddick, developed a project to incorporate
an important feature not contained in the 1980 publication. Beyond simply listing
the eight codes of rules, our goal is to show how the Senates current rules have
evolved from earlier versions, including rules both added and dropped between codifications. Some modern Senate rules have their origins in the first code of rules that
the Senate adopted in 1789. Many of those first rules can be traced to even earlier
timesto rules Thomas Jefferson prepared in 1776 for the Continental Congress.
This work, to be completed within the coming year, will contain the original text
of all standing rules, beginning with those the Senate adopted on April 16, 1789.
It will reprint each of the seven subsequent codifications (1806, 1820, 1828, 1868,
1877, 1884, and 1979) along with changes adopted between each codification. Appendices will contain related rules of the Continental Congresses, the Maryland General
Assembly (1777), the Senate of the Confederate States of America, Senate Impeachment Rules from 1798, and the abandoned joint rules of Congress. Footnotes and
sidebars will provide brief explanations of the reasons for significant changes.
Senate Stories: 200 Notable Days, 17872002.This publication will present 200
brief stories featuring the Senates best-loved and most notorious former members,
its triumphs and tragedies, and some lesser-known moments that reflect the Senates character as the Worlds Greatest Deliberative Body. Readers will learn how
the Senate was created, who became the first cabinet member to be confirmed (and
the first rejected), how decorum was not always strictly maintained on the Senate
floor, and how a certain Senators toupee signaled a change in the seasons. These
200 historical essays are drawn from a larger number prepared during an eight-year
period for weekly delivery to an audience of several dozen senators. Those Senators
appeared to appreciate these essays for adding historical context to their daily responsibilities. Historical Office staff researched and compiled sources and photographs for each essay to be included in the publication.
Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC).In 2005, Historical Office staff assisted with preparations and editing of printed materials, followed up on questions and reference requests forwarded to them by the JCCIC,
made minor changes to the Web site as needed, and assisted the Recording Studio
with preparing and editing text for the 2005 Inaugural video. Staff participated in
an on-camera interview, responding to historical questions about presidential inaugurations, for use in the Inaugural video. Staff continues to maintain the Inaugural
website as stewards until the next JCCIC forms in 2008.
Oral History Program
The Historical Office conducts a series of oral history interviews that provide personal recollections of various Senate careers. This year, interviews were completed
with Leonard Weiss, former staff director of the Governmental Affairs Committee;
Timothy Wineman, Senate Financial Clerk; and Dennis W. Brezina, former staff
member of the Subcommittee on Government Research. Several interviews are in
progress, and the interviews of Chuck Ludlam, former staff member of the Separation of Powers Subcommittee, have been processed and opened for research. The
complete transcripts of 20 interviews have also been posted on the Senates Web
site.
Member Services
Members Records Management and Disposition Assistance.The Senate archivist
continued the program of assisting members offices with planning for the preservation of their permanently valuable records, emphasizing the importance of managing
electronic records, and transferring valuable records to a home-state repository. The
archivist began revising the Records Management Handbook for United States Senators and Their Archival Repositories. The archivist continued to work with staff
from all repositories receiving senatorial collections to ensure adequacy of documentation and the transfer of appropriate records with adequate finding aids. The
archivist provided briefing materials to transition offices and met with staff. The archivist conducted a seminar on records management for Senate offices and participated in the Senate Services Fair. The archivist participated in a panel discussion
at the annual meeting of the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress on
Developing a Collaborative Approach to Web-Based Content (for congressional papers collections), and also in the second symposium sponsored by the John H.
Brademas Center for the Study of Congress at New York University, which focused
on the development of a policy for the papers of public officials. The archivist orga-

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nized and led a session on procedures for handling classified documents that are discovered in members collections after they have been donated to an archival repository. This was presented at the Society of American Archivists annual meeting.
Committee Records Management and Disposition Assistance.The Senate archivist provided each committee with staff briefings, record surveys, guidance on preservation of information in electronic systems, and instructions for the transfer of
permanently valuable records to the National Archives Center for Legislative Archives. 2,966 cubic feet of Senate records were transferred to the Archives. The archivist revised and published the Records Management Handbook for United States
Senate Committees. Part of the revision entailed developing, with assistance from
National Archives (NARA) staff, a protocol for transfer of electronic records to
NARAs Center for Legislative Archives. The Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs and its archivist developed and successfully implemented a
project using this protocol to appraise and transfer electronic records to the archives. The archivist worked with the Budget Committee to find professional assistance to perform a records survey and to begin comprehensive archival processing
of older transfers for the purpose of assuming better intellectual control over their
historical collection. The archival assistant continued to provide processing assistance to committees and administrative offices in need of basic help with noncurrent
files. The archival assistant produced committee archiving reports in Access database format covering records transfers for the past year. The archivist will use
these reports in 2006 to provide committees with suggestions for improvements. The
archivist hosted a tour and briefing for chief clerks at the Center for Legislative Archives.
Senate Historical Minutes.The Senate historian continued a nine-year series
of Senate Historical Minutes, begun in 1997 at the request of the Senate Democratic Leader. In 2005, the historian prepared and delivered a Senate Historical
Minute at 21 Senate Democratic Conference weekly meetings. These 400-word Minutes were designed to enlighten members about significant events and personalities
associated with the Senates institutional development. More than 200 Minutes are
available as a feature on the Senate website.
Photographic Collections
The photo historian created the first ever published pictorial directory of Senators,
Faces of the Senate: A Pictorial Directory of United States Senators, 17892005.
Since the First Congress convened in 1789, 1,885 men and women have served in
the United States Senate. This invaluable reference source contains images of all
but 46 of them. The images in the volume are arranged alphabetically by state, and
further divided within each state by Senate class. This one-of-a-kind publication offers a unique visual representation of the collective Senate from its inception to the
present. Prompted by the desire to make the Faces pictorial directory as complete
as possible, the photo historian sought and acquired images of nearly 100 former
Senators not previously represented in the Offices collection. Many of these newly
acquired images were obtained from various universities, historical societies, and
state libraries throughout the nation. More than half of the images came from a collection of late 19th- and early 20th-century photo scrapbooks that were donated to
the Office at the end of 2004. These scrapbooks were inventoried and copy negatives
were made of many of the images contained therein.
The photo historian continued to provide timely photographic reference service,
while cataloging, digitizing, re-housing, and expanding the Offices 40,000-item
image collection. The offices Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) and vital electronic records were updated. As a contribution to the offices educational outreach
efforts, two online photographic exhibits were created for the Senate websiteCapitol Scenes: 19001950 and World War II: The Senate and the Nations Capital. A
third online exhibit, The Senate Through the Ages, has been created and will be
available on the website shortly. A number of Senators offices were inspired by the
Faces pictorial directory to display the images of all the Senators who had served
from their state. The photo historian worked with the offices on these projects, providing the images and assisting in the design of the displays.
Educational Outreach
Much of the Senate Historical Offices correspondence with the general public
takes place through the Senates website, which has become an indispensable source
for information about the institution. The assistant historian and the Historical Office staff maintain and frequently update the Web site with timely reference and
historical information. In 2005, the Historical Office received an estimated 1,500 inquiries from the general public, the press, students, family genealogists, congressional staffers, and academics, through the public e-mail address provided on the

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Senate website. The diverse nature of their questions reflects the varied levels of
interest in how the Senate functions, its institutional history, and the individuals
who have served in the body.
In coordination with the Office of Education and Training, Historical Office staff
provided seminars on the general history of the Senate, Senate committees, women
senators, Senate floor leadership, and the Constitution. Office staff also participated
in seminars and briefings for specially scheduled groups. The Senate historian addressed a conference in the United Kingdom entitled, What Are Senates For?
Sponsored by the University of Londons Institute for Historical Research, this symposium was designed to explore further reform opportunities for the House of Lords
by examining the experience of legislative upper houses in other western nations.
The associate historian delivered the keynote address to the Northern Great Plains
History Conference in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, participated in a workshop on Congress and History at Washington University in St. Louis, and was part of a panel
discussion on The American Congress at the National Archives and Records Administration.
Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress.This eleven-member permanent
committee, established in 1990 by Public Law 101509, meets twice a year to advise
Congress and the Archivist of the United States on the management and preservation of the records of Congress. Its Senate-related membership includes appointees
of the majority and minority leaders; the Secretary of the Senate, who serves as
committee vice chair during the 109th Congress; and the Senate historian. The Historical Office provided support services for the Committees June and December
meetings.
Capitol Visitor Center Exhibition Content Committee.Staff historians completed
their assignments in drafting text for displays in the exhibition gallery of the Capitol Visitor Center. During 2005, the Office assisted Donna Lawrence Productions
and Cortina Productions with background material for several visitor orientation
films and interactive visual displays.
Association of Centers for the Study of Congress.In May, the Historical Office
assisted with the third annual meeting of the Association of Centers for the Study
of Congress. Among the centers involved in this promising new organization are
those associated with the public careers of former Senators Howard Baker, Bob
Dole, Everett Dirksen, Thomas Dodd, Wendell Ford, Hubert Humphrey, Richard
Russell, John Stennis, and John Glenn.
7. HUMAN RESOURCES

The Office of Human Resources was established in June 1995 as a result of the
Congressional Accountability Act. The Office focuses on developing and implementing human resources policies, procedures, and programs for the Office of the
Secretary of the Senate that fulfill the legal requirements of the workplace and complement the organizations strategic goals and values.
This includes recruiting and staffing; providing guidance and advice to managers
and staff; training; performance management; job analysis; compensation planning,
design, and administration; leave administration; records management; employee
handbooks and manuals; internal grievance procedures; employee relations and
services; and organizational planning and development.
The Human Resources Office also administers the Secretarys Public Transportation Subsidy program and the Summer Intern Program that offers college students the opportunity to gain valuable skills and experience in a variety of Senate
support offices.
Classification and Compensation Review Completed
HR conducted a complete classification and compensation study. This work product is the single largest program to come from this office since its inception. The
classification study includes a comprehensive collection of current job classifications
and specifications for every position in the Office. Other federal agencies are looking
to move from the GS schedule to this concept of broad banding, which allows greater
flexibility in pay for performance models rather than simple graduated steps.
Policies and Procedures
The Secretary, through HR, is updating and revising the Employee Handbook of
the Office of the Secretary. With nuances in employment law and other advances,
the policies are being reviewed, coordinated with counsel, revised and updated. An
entirely new updated Employee Handbook will be available in 2006.

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Employee Self-Service (ESS)
HR has implemented use of the Employee Self-Service system (ESS) which is a
secure system enabling Secretary staff to review and update personnel information
pertaining to addresses, phone numbers and emergency contact information. Employees are now able to review and correct information to their electronic personnel
records maintained by HR. Staff and managers can also access leave records and
reports through this system. The ability to review and update this information is
instrumental to maintaining accurate contact lists for emergencies or other contingencies.
ESS is a useful communication method among a large staff. It is incumbent upon
the department to find ways to solicit the feedback, suggestions and insight of staff
in an effort to continually improve processes and procedures. One way we have incorporated this effort is in the ESS system. There is a suggestion box component
to this service that allows staff to anonymously send a message to HR with a concern or suggestion, to be considered by HR and/or the Executive Office.
Recruitment and Retention of Staff
HR has the ongoing task of advertising new vacancies or positions, screening applicants, interviewing candidates and assisting with all phases of the hiring process.
HR will coordinate with the Sergeant at Arms HR to post all SAA and Secretary
vacancies on the Senate intranet so that the larger Senate community may access
the posting from their own offices.
HR assists in advising on performance-related issues and meets with staff and supervisors to develop performance improvement plans. Such plans help in both the
development of a productive staff member and in making disciplinary recommendations when necessary.
Outreach
HR conducted the first Elder Care Fair that was made available to all Senate
staff on October 24, 2005. The event provided an opportunity for staff to learn about
and access local and nationwide services available to assist the elderly and those
responsible for their care.
Comprehensive resource manuals were created and distributed throughout the
Senate and have been requested by specific offices, committees, and departments.
The goal is to conduct an Elder Care Fair every other year.
Training
In conjunction with the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment, HR works to prepare training for department heads and staff. Some of the training topics include
Sexual Harassment, Interviewing Skills, Conducting Background Checks, Providing
Feedback to Employees and Goal Setting.
Interns and Fellows
HR coordinates both the Secretarys internship program and the Heinz Fellowship
program. From advertising, conducting needs analyses, communicating, screening,
placing and following up with all interns, HR keeps a close connection with the interns to make the internship most beneficial to them and the organization.
8. INFORMATION SYSTEMS

The staff of the Department of Information Systems provides technical hardware

and software support for the Office of the Secretary of the Senate. Information Systems staff also interface closely with the application and network development
groups within the Sergeant at Arms (SAA), the Government Printing Office (GPO),
and outside vendors on technical issues and joint projects. The Department provides
computer related support for all LAN-based servers within the Office of the Secretary of the Senate. Information Systems staff provide direct application support
for all software installed workstations, initiate and guide new technologies, and implement next generation hardware and software solutions.
Mission Evaluation
The primary mission of the Information Systems Department is to continue to
provide the highest level of customer satisfaction and computer support for all departments within the Office of the Secretary of the Senate. Emphasis is placed on
the creation and transfer of legislation to outside departments and agencies, meeting Disbursing office financial responsibilities to the member offices, and office mandated and statutory obligations.

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Staffing and Functionality
No incremental staffing changes occurred in fiscal year 2005. The staffing level
has remained unchanged since 1998, although functional responsibilities for support
in other departments have expanded. Information System staff functionality was expanded by moving the IT structure from a local LAN support structure to an enterprise IT support process. Improved diagnostic practices were adopted to expand support across all Secretary Departments. Several departments, namely Disbursing,
Chief Counsel for Employment, Office of Public Records, Page School, Senate Security, Stationery and Gift Shop previously employed dedicated information technology
staff resident within the offices. Public Records, Stationery, and Gift Shop remote
support was added in 2005. Information Systems personnel continue to provide a
multi-tiered escalated hardware and software support for these offices.
For information security reasons, departments have implemented isolated computer systems, unique applications, and isolated local area networks. The Secretary
of the Senate network is a closed local area network to all offices within the Senate.
Information Systems staff continue to provide a common level of hardware and software integration for these networks, and for the shared resources of interdepartmental networking. Information System staff continue to actively participate in all
new project design and implementation within the Secretary of the Senate operations.
Improvements to the Secretarys LANs
The Senate chose Windows NT as the standard network operating system in 1997.
The continuing support strategy is to enhance existing hardware and software supports provided by the Information Systems Department, and augment that support
with assistance from the SAA whenever required. The network supports approximately 300 users accounts and patron accounts in the Capitol, the Senate Hart,
Russell, and Dirksen Buildings, and the Page School. The total number of hardware
servers retired in 2005 was 16.
Fiscal Year 2005 Summary Results
The Active Directory and Messaging Architecture (ADMA) marks the first time
that all Secretary IT equipment is operating in a pure client/server relationship. The
IT infrastructure foundation is now positioned for scaleable and expanded growth
in all Secretary offices.
The ADMA project implementation provided a central point of IT system administration, and the opportunity to implement enterprise wide solutions, namely Outlook Web Access and remote messaging, offsite access to Webster, LIS, and
newswire services.
Improvements incorporated in the Amendment Tracking Project now provide submitted as well as proposed amendments scanned for all Member offices.
Microsoft released 37 critical security updates for each workstation in 2005. Information System staff incorporated new techniques to test and deploy these updates
to all systems. Coupled with a secure wake-up-on-LAN technology, workstations
that are turned off can now securely powered up on the weekend, security updates
installed, turned off, and ready for business as usual on Monday morning.
Active Directory and Message Infrastructure Project (ADMA)
The Microsoft Outlook E-Mail client solution is referred to as the Messaging Architecture and the replacement of the existing Windows NT server installed base is
referred to as the Active Directory project. The ADMA plan involved all staff employees and was integrated into one central Active Directory Secretary Enterprise
in 2005. Each department (except the Disbursing Office and Chief Counsel for Employment) is now structured as an organizational unit within the new enterprise.
In September 2005, phase one was completed, and phase two (Disbursing) was
completed in December 2005.
There are several benefits to the implementation of the ADMA:
All secure-id and Passface users have remote access to web-mail, Congress.gov,
CRS, and news wire services;
Access to web based services is available from all public and private internet
locations;
Centralized system administrative processes;
Higher level of active file sharing and improved collaboration between different
business functions; and
Higher levels of messaging functionality during COOP events.
Clearly, the implementation of ADMA for the Secretary involved numerous resources on the part of both the Sergeant at Arms and the Secretarys offices. The

121
importance of this single project provides the base for all future IT related projects
in the coming years.
Legislative Operation Upgrades
The technical staff collaborated with the SAA application development software
personnel to complete the transition of the Amendment Tracking System workflow
process to a web-based solution. This redesign facilitates the scanning of submitted
and proposed amendments for all Senate offices.
Stationery Room Renovation Procurement
The Stationery Room awarded a contract to replace the existing hardware servers
in August 2005. This process had not been updated in over ten years.
An enhancement to the Stationery Rooms services incorporated a Metro Subsidy
system which allows Senate offices to request allotted subsidies in advance using
a web-browser based connection. SAA provided the web-entry portal at PSQ, and
the Secretarys office installed the necessary SQL database server at PSQ. Hardware servers maintained jointly by SAA and the Secretary were initiated in 2005
to provide this advance purchase request.
Curator Project Management Software
In May 2004 a project requirement surfaced to provide the Curators office with
a method to create, edit, publish, and distribute information relative to numerous
contracts and outside vendor projects. After evaluating these business requirements,
the IT solution implemented now provides multi-user collaboration software to track
and monitor these numerous projects.
In parallel, working with SAA Research and Development, this solution was also
deemed valuable to other Senate offices. Implementation of this package allows staff
to communicate and share files regardless of location. A Senate wide rollout is expected in 2005.
9. INTERPARLIAMENTARY SERVICES

The Office of Interparliamentary Services (IPS) has completed its 24th year of operation as a department of the Secretary of the Senate. IPS is responsible for administrative, financial, and protocol functions for all interparliamentary conferences
in which the Senate participates by statute, for interparliamentary conferences in
which the Senate participates on an ad hoc basis, and for special delegations authorized by the Majority and/or Minority Leaders. The office also provides appropriate
assistance as requested by other Senate delegations.
The statutory interparliamentary conferences are: NATO Parliamentary Assembly; Mexico-United States Interparliamentary Group; Canada-United States Interparliamentary Group; British-American Interparliamentary Group; United StatesRussia Interparliamentary Group; and United States-China Interparliamentary
Group.
In June, the 44th Annual Meeting of the Mexico-U.S. Interparliamentary Group
was held in Rhode Island. Arrangements for this successful event were handled by
the IPS staff.
As in previous years, all foreign travel authorized by the Leadership is arranged
by the IPS staff. In addition to delegation trips, IPS provided assistance to individual Senators and staff traveling overseas. Senators and staff authorized by committees for foreign travel continue to call upon this office for assistance with passports, visas, travel arrangements, and reporting requirements.
IPS receives and prepares for printing the quarterly financial reports for foreign
travel from all committees in the Senate. In addition to preparing the quarterly reports for the Majority Leader, the Minority Leader, and the President Pro Tempore,
IPS staff also assists staff members of Senators and committees in completing the
required reports.
Interparliamentary Services maintains regular contact with the Office of the Chief
of Protocol, Department of State, and with foreign embassy officials. Official foreign
visitors are frequently received in this office and assistance is given to individuals
as well as to groups by the IPS staff. The staff continues to work closely with other
offices of the Secretary of the Senate and the Sergeant at Arms in arranging programs for foreign visitors. In addition, IPS is frequently consulted by individual
Senators offices on a broad range of protocol questions. Occasional questions come
from state officials or the general public regarding Congressional protocol.
On behalf of the Leadership, the staff arranges receptions in the Senate for Heads
of State, Heads of Government, Heads of Parliaments, and parliamentary delegations. Required records of expenditures on behalf of foreign visitors under authority
of Public Law 10071 are maintained in the Office of Interparliamentary Services.

122
Planning is underway for the 46th Annual Meeting of the Canada-U.S. Interparliamentary Group, which will be held in the United States in 2006. Advance
work, including site inspection, will be undertaken for the Mexico-U.S. Interparliamentary Group and British American Parliamentary Group meetings to be
held in the United States in 2007. Preparations are also underway for the spring
and fall sessions of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
10. LIBRARY

The Senate Library provides legislative, legal, business, and general information
services to the United States Senate. The librarys collection encompasses legislative
documents that date from the Continental Congress in 1774; current and historic
executive and judicial branch materials; and an extensive book collection on American politics, history, and biography. Other resources include a wide array of online
systems used to provide nonpartisan, confidential, timely, and accurate information
services to the Senate. The library also authors content for three websites: Legislative Information Service, Senate.gov, and Webster.
Notable Achievements
Information inquiries increased 26 percent.
LIS nomination records enhanced with links to 1,074 full-text hearings.
Senate Support Facility opened, providing archival storage for library collections.
Project undertaken to provide electronic access to the Senate Historical Offices
3,000-volume book collection.
180 Senate staff were provided LIS instruction.
Information Services
Legal, legislative, business, and general research are the primary components of
the Senate Librarys mission. The two categories of patron requests are traditional
requests resulting from walk-ins, telephone calls, faxes, or e-mails, and requests directed to library-produced web resources. As content providers to three websites
Senate.gov, the Legislative Information System (LIS), and Websterthe librarys
work flow and procedures, staff skills, and information products have changed significantly and permanently. XML technology has significantly and positively impacted web work flow and work product. As a result, the library can meet the Senate communitys ever-increasing reliance on technology with accurate, pertinent,
and current information in an even more timely and cost-effective manner. The response to the librarys commitment to web initiatives was a 26 percent increase in
inquiries from the previous year. This marked the second consecutive year of double-digit increases.

INFORMATION SERVICES TO THE SENATE

Year

2005 ..........................................................................................................
2004 ..........................................................................................................
2003 ..........................................................................................................

Traditional
Inquiries

Web Inquiries

33,080
33,750
46,234

823,076
602,236
348,198

Total

856,156
635,986
394,432

Increase from
Previous Year

26 percent
38 percent
Baseline

Most of the activities supporting research also reflected significant increases, including 4,015 information packages delivered (23 percent) and 133,335 photocopies (13.75 percent). The number of loaned books and documents increased 27
percent to 2,752 and 330 new borrowing accounts were established, bringing the
total to 2,667. Other important contributors to the across-the-board increases were
the October 2004 Senate-wide release of the librarys online catalog, which recorded
nearly 4,000 user visits, the interactive New Books List, and the new e-mail book
ordering service. In addition, more than 4,400 pages were produced from the librarys extensive microform collection of newspapers, journals, and congressional
documents.
Significant Projects
Supreme Court Nominations
A web-available history documenting the 158 Supreme Court nominations submitted to the Senate since 1789 was compiled and published. This unique web document features confirmation chronologies and embedded links to voting records,
nominee biographies, and essays regarding special circumstances. The document has
been published on Senate.gov, the Legislative Information System, and the Senate
Librarys Home Page on Webster.

123
A related Supreme Court project provides web access to the text of confirmation
hearings conducted since 1971 and Senate executive reports issued since 1993.
These two categories of important documents were provided through collaboration
with the Senate Judiciary Committee, Congressional Research Service (CRS), Government Printing Office (GPO), and Library of Congress Law Library.
Senate Hearings on LIS
The Legislative Information System nomination reports were enhanced with the
addition of 886 Senate hearing numbers, the key to identifying a specific transcript
in a library or at GPO.
A related LIS project linked the hearing numbers to the full text of hearing transcripts at GPO Access. The June release of this new feature on LIS was followed
by a November release on THOMAS. To date, this cooperative project between the
Library of Congress and the Senate Library has established 1,074 full-text links to
Senate committee hearings.
Appropriations Legislation
The librarys popular Appropriations Legislation series documents the history of
appropriations measures since fiscal year 1993. The histories were significantly improved with the addition of links to full-text transcripts of nearly 200 Senate Appropriations hearings. An additional feature that links House hearing information to
the web-based library catalog is available to Senate staff through the librarys Webster site. Simultaneous dynamic publishing to the histories on Webster, LIS, and
Senate.gov was designed by the Web Technology Office and significantly improved
editing procedures.
Educational Services
LIS Savvy classes, a new library outreach program, were introduced in March.
The one-hour classroom sessions provided 180 Senate staff with expert LIS training
from an experienced research librarian. In addition to the scheduled monthly sessions, six more classes, including a teleconference training session, were held to
meet the demand. LIS Savvy classes complement the librarys responsibility as the
Senates official Help Desk for commercial and legislative databases.
In addition, 204 Senate staff attended library-sponsored seminars and events including Services of the Senate Library Seminars, the Senate Services Fair, Senate
Page School tours, state staff orientations, and the annual National Library Week
reception and book talk.
During 2005, the library hosted 179 visitors from graduate schools, professional
organizations, and federal libraries. The tours included Catholic University and University of North Carolina graduate students; library staff from the Supreme Court,
Central Intelligence Agency, and Library of Congress; D.C. Special Library Association members; and participants in the annual GPO Depository Library Conference.
Technical Services
Acquisitions
The library received 11,988 (2.5 percent) new acquisitions in 2005. Of this number, 7,520 were congressional documents, 3,588 executive branch publications, and
the remaining 880 items were books related to politics, American history, or biography.
As a participant in the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), the library
receives selected categories of legislative, executive, and judicial branch publications
from GPO. In 2005, the library acquired 11,108 items through FDLP. The trend to
electronically distribute government publications has significantly reduced the overall number of paper documents issued; GPO reports that 95 percent of government
documents are now issued electronically. The library responded to this trend by
hosting 16,938 electronic catalog links, the majority of which are to government documents.
A major project is the ongoing title-by-title evaluation of executive branch publications. During the fifth year of the project, 1,462 superseded or surplus items were
withdrawn from the collection and 628 of these items were donated to requesting
federal libraries. The projects final phase will improve organization and access by
integrating the retained documents into the book collection. Toward this end, 379
documents were reclassified and merged into the larger primary collection.
Cataloging
The librarys productive cataloging staff draws on years of experience to produce
and maintain a catalog of more than 166,912 bibliographic items. During the year,
10,385 items were added to the catalog including 5,179 new titles (10 percent),
and 5,689 items were withdrawn. A total of 28,928 maintenance transactions con-

124
tributed to the catalogs content, currency, and record integrity. The library also contributed 664 personal names and congressional terms to the Name Authorities Cooperative program (NACO) at the Library of Congress. That number is exceptional
and underscores cataloging skills and the very special nature of the Senates collections. As an international authority, NACOs institutional participants create shared
cataloging resources for the larger library community.
Staff addressed the longstanding issue of tracking committee hearings. There is
often a three to six-month period between the date a hearing is held and publication
of the official transcript. To date, 383 records have been created for yet-to-be published hearings. Senate staff and researchers are now able to identify both published and unpublished Senate hearings by searching the library catalog.
Other cataloging projects included assisting the Senate Historical Office in providing electronic access to their 3,000 volume book collection. Once completed, the
entire collection will be searchable through the librarys online catalog. Since May,
records for the first 638 titles have been completed.
Web-Based Catalog
The librarys online catalog, containing 166,912 bibliographic records, was released Senate-wide on October 25, 2004. During the first operational year, Senate
staff searched the catalog on nearly 4,000 occasions. The public catalog is updated
nightly to guarantee that Senate staff will retrieve accurate and timely information
on library holdings. The holdings for electronic journals and government-issued serials, including annual reports and recurring documents, were added to the catalog
in 2005.
A four-month beta test of the latest catalog upgrade was followed by a June installation of the new 3.3 version. The beta testing provided an opportunity to recommend search and display improvements. Catalog users will see enhanced full-text
search capability with system-generated equivalent and substitute terms. For more
precision, exact-match searching, which provides more focused results, is also available. The catalog improvements have significantly integrated the majority of library
resources onto the Secretarys network.
The library utilizes a statistical and analytical tool, to process raw data from the
public catalog web server. This valuable management tool provides information on
aggregate catalog usage and will result in improved design and service.
Offsite Storage, Collection Maintenance, and Binding
The Senate Support Facility was completed in December 2005 and will provide
long-term, preservation-quality storage for library collections. The librarys designated area in the warehouse provides storage for 56,000 volumes, and has on-site
security, fire suppression, museum-standard humidity and temperature controls, air
filtration, and telecommunications. A collection of 25,000 historic and rare congressional documents will be transferred to the SSF in 2006.
Preservation of the librarys 18th and 19th century collections resulted in several
initiatives, including a volume-by-volume collection survey that will identify those
titles requiring conservation, repair, or replacement. To prevent the growth of mold
and mildew, routine monitoring ensures that strict temperature and humidity levels
are maintained. To guarantee future availability and preservation, GPO bound 550
library volumes for the permanent collection.
Administrative
Budget
Budget reductions in 2005 totaled $2,544.32. Nine years of budget monitoring has
resulted in reductions totaling $73,484.18. Continual review of purchases has eliminated materials not meeting the Senates current information needs. This oversight
is also critical in offsetting cost increases for core materials and for acquiring new
materials. The goal is to provide the highest service level using the latest technologies and best resources in the most cost-effective manner.
Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
The addition of a laptop computer significantly improved the librarys ability to
meet COOP-related and special event responsibilities. With added remote access to
the Senate.gov content management system (CMS), staff can efficiently update the
floor schedule. To meet COOP requirements for an alternate work site, the librarys
warehouse location will provide staff areas, a core reference collection, and access
to the Senate network and telecommunications systems.
Unum, Newsletter of the Office of the Secretary of the Senate
Unum, the Secretarys quarterly newsletter produced by Senate Library staff
since October 1997, is an historical record of accomplishments, events, and per-

125
sonnel in the Office of the Secretary of the Senate. Three issues were published during 2005, including a 16-page commemorative issue honoring the 200th anniversary
of Constantino Brumidis birth. In addition, Senate-wide access to each of the thirtyseven issues was made available through Webster and the librarys catalog.
Major Library Goals for 2006
Relocate 25,000 volumes to the Senate Support Facility.
Redesign the librarys Webster site.
Identify a COOP-designated reference collection for the Senate Support Facility.
Continue the review and reclassification of executive branch materials.
Add Senate hearing numbers to LIS status reports for the 19872000 time period.
Plan for server upgrades in preparation for future catalog requirements.

21
22
20
63
18
34
27
79
50
21
33
104
32
48
20
100
346
225
53.78

1st Quarter ...........................................................................................................................

April ....................................................................................................................................................
May .....................................................................................................................................................
June ....................................................................................................................................................

2nd Quarter ..........................................................................................................................

July .....................................................................................................................................................
August ................................................................................................................................................
September ..........................................................................................................................................

3rd Quarter ...........................................................................................................................

October ...............................................................................................................................................
November ...........................................................................................................................................
December ...........................................................................................................................................

4th Quarter ...........................................................................................................................

2005 Total ............................................................................................................................

2004 Total ............................................................................................................................

Percent Change ..................................................................................................................................

Books

January ...............................................................................................................................................
February .............................................................................................................................................
March .................................................................................................................................................

Ordered

22.91

880
716

211

82
74
55

194

61
75
58

278

78
98
102

197

65
51
81

Received

.34

2,337
2,329

576

187
215
174

480

170
120
190

442

161
122
159

839

234
208
397

Paper

27.01

1,251
985

176

76
49
51

330

51
78
201

473

35
42
396

272

86
44
142

Fiche

Government Documents

16.13

7.99

50

17
13
20

64

21
25
18

78

35
27
16

60

19
13
28

252
217

Prints

48
81
74

24.51

884
1,171

205

68
56
81

271

65
58
148

205

53
80
72

203

Bylaw

Congressional Publications

2,926
3,180

827

283
256
288

760

249
276
235

614

214
183
217

725

206
276
243

Hearings

SENATE LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2005ACQUISITIONS

17.02

3,458
2,955

810

293
350
167

884

292
324
268

907

204
367
336

857

342
242
273

Reports/
Docs

2.48

11,988
11,698

2,855

1,006
1,013
836

2,983

909
956
1,118

2,997

780
919
1,298

3,153

1,000
915
1,238

Total

126

42
20
121
183
................
14
44
58
647
81
28
756
19
46
26
91
1,088
240
353.33

January ...............................................................................................................................................
February .............................................................................................................................................
March .................................................................................................................................................

1st Quarter ...........................................................................................................................

April ....................................................................................................................................................
May .....................................................................................................................................................
June ....................................................................................................................................................

2nd Quarter ..........................................................................................................................

July .....................................................................................................................................................
August ................................................................................................................................................
September ..........................................................................................................................................

3rd Quarter ...........................................................................................................................

October ...............................................................................................................................................
November ...........................................................................................................................................
December ...........................................................................................................................................

4th Quarter ...........................................................................................................................

2005 Total ............................................................................................................................

2004 Total ............................................................................................................................

Percent Change ..................................................................................................................................

S. Hearing
Numbers
Added to
LIS

68

22
21
25

17.65

500
425

78

30
21
27

126

47
30
49

228

38
69
121

Books

85
51

21

2
5
14

16

2
6
8

24

11
5
8

24

6
2
16

66.67

Paper

31

17
7
7

39.02

57
41

13

8
2
3

10

2
7
1

1
................
2

Fiche

254.05

131
37

46

4
33
9

45

17
21
7

20

8
7
5

20

13
5
2

Electronic

Government Documents

1.50

3,379
3,329

1,077

478
337
262

601

197
158
246

775

133
239
403

926

353
258
315

20

8
6
6

14

4
5
5

988
662
49.24

76.22

242

49
64
129

243

42
103
98

263

108
88
67

240

51
75
114

39
164

................
................
2

2
................
1

Prints

Docs./
Pubs./Reports

Congressional Publications
Hearings

Bibliographic Records Cataloged

SENATE LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2005CATALOGING

9.98

5,179
4,709

1,479

571
462
446

1,044

309
325
410

1,333

307
414
612

1,323

466
373
484

Total
Records
Cataloged

127

128
SENATE LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2005DOCUMENT DELIVERY
Volumes
Loaned

Materials
Delivered

Facsimiles

Micrographics
Center
Pages
Printed

Photocopiers
Pages
Printed

January ...............................................................................................
February .............................................................................................
March .................................................................................................

213
220
254

333
271
384

119
79
143

534
234
479

5,874
10,258
8,567

1st Quarter ...........................................................................

687

988

341

1,247

24,699

April ...................................................................................................
May ....................................................................................................
June ....................................................................................................

202
254
225

357
280
366

75
36
73

151
401
413

12,082
9,886
11,183

2nd Quarter ..........................................................................

681

1,003

184

965

33,151

July .....................................................................................................
August ................................................................................................
September ..........................................................................................

210
359
216

252
633
317

112
111
70

158
550
320

8,617
10,268
13,095

3rd Quarter ...........................................................................

785

1,202

293

1,028

31,980

October ...............................................................................................
November ...........................................................................................
December ...........................................................................................

207
225
167

317
273
232

76
38
69

374
414
378

8,986
8,894
5,625

4th Quarter ...........................................................................

599

822

183

1,166

23,505

2005 Total ............................................................................

2004 Total ............................................................................

2,752
2,165

4,015
3,265

1,001
1,904

4,406
4,522

113,335
99,636

Percent Change .................................................................................

27.11

22.97

47.43

2.57

13.75

11. SENATE PAGE SCHOOL

The United States Senate Page School exists to provide a smooth transition from
and to the students home schools, providing those students with as sound a program, both academically and experientially, as possible during their stay in the nations capital, within the limits of the constraints imposed by the work situation.
Summary of Accomplishments
Accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools continues
until December 31, 2008.
Two page classes successfully completed their semester curriculum. Closing ceremonies were conducted on June 10, 2005, and January 20, 2006, the last day of
school for each semester.
Orientation and course scheduling for the Spring 2005 and Fall 2005 pages were
successfully completed. Needs of incoming students determined the semester schedules.
Extended educational experiences were provided to pages. Twenty-one field trips,
five guest speakers, opportunities to compete in writing and speaking contests, to
play musical instruments and vocalize, and to continue foreign language study with
the aid of tutors of four languages were all afforded pages. Six field trips to educational sites and three speakers were provided for summer pages as an extension
of the page experience. National tests were administered for qualification in scholarship programs as well.
Effective and efficient communication and coordination among the Sergeant at
Arms, Secretary, Party Secretaries, Page Program, and Page School continues.
The evacuation plan and COOP have been reviewed and updated. Pages and staff
continue to practice evacuating to primary and secondary sites.
The community service project embraced by pages and staff in 2002 continues.
Items for gift packages were collected, assembled, and shipped to military personnel
in Afghanistan and Iraq. The pages included letters of support to the troops participating in Operation Enduring Freedom. Several recipients of gift packages wrote
letters to the pages expressing their appreciation.

129
Staff and pages participated in escape hood training.
Tutors were trained in evacuation procedures.
Updated materials and equipment were purchased. These included five Titanium
calculators, supplemental English textbooks, pre-calculus textbooks, and political
science and American government texts.
Faculty have pursued learning opportunities. One participated in the Veterans
History Project workshop at the Library of Congress; another attended an AP Physics workshop, a Hazard Communications seminar, the T3 International conference,
and a PASCO workshop; and a third attended the National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics convention as well as the T3 International Conference and completed
two courses in his doctoral program.
All sinks in the science lab have been retrofitted with aspirators.
Summary of Plans
Our goals include:
Individualized small group instruction and tutoring by teachers on an as-needed
basis will continue to be offered.
Foreign language tutors will provide instruction in French, Spanish, German,
Latin, and Japanese.
The focus of field trips will be sites of historic, political, and scientific importance which complement the curriculum.
Staff development options will include attendance at a technology conference,
seminars conducted by Education and Training, and subject matter conferences
conducted by national organizations.
The community service project will continue.
12. PRINTING AND DOCUMENT SERVICES

The Office of Printing and Document Services (OPDS) serves as the liaison to the
Government Printing Office (GPO) for the Senates official printing, ensuring that
all Senate printing is in compliance with Title 44, U.S. Code as it relates to Senate
documents, hearings, committee prints and other official publications. The office assists the Senate by coordinating, scheduling, delivering and preparing Senate legislation, hearings, documents, committee prints and miscellaneous publications for
printing, and provides printed copies of all legislation and public laws to the Senate
and the public. In addition, the office assigns publication numbers to all hearings,
committee prints, documents and other publications; orders all blank paper, envelopes and letterhead for the Senate; and prepares page counts of all Senate hearings
in order to compensate commercial reporting companies for the preparation of hearings.
Printing Services
During fiscal year 2005, the OPDS prepared 4,439 printing and binding requisitions authorizing the GPO to print and bind the Senates work, exclusive of legislation and the Congressional Record. Since the requisitioning done by the OPDS
is central to the Senates printing, the office is uniquely suited to perform invoice
and bid reviewing responsibilities for Senate printing. As a result of this offices cost
accounting duties, OPDS is able to review and assure accurate GPO invoicing as
well as play an active role in helping to provide the best possible bidding scenario
for Senate publications.
In addition to processing requisitions, the Printing Services Section coordinates
proof handling, job scheduling and tracking for stationery products, Senate hearings, Senate publications and other miscellaneous printed products, as well as monitoring blank paper and stationery quotas for each Senate office and committee. The
offices online blank paper ordering system, implemented in 2003, continues to be
a popular option for Senate staff. The OPDS also coordinates a number of publications for other Senate offices, such as the Curator, Historical Office, Disbursing,
Legislative Clerk, and Senate Library in addition to the U.S. Botanic Garden, U.S.
Capitol Police and Architect of the Capitol. These tasks include providing guidance
for design, paper selection, specifications for quotations, monitoring print quality
and distribution. Last years major printing projects included the Report of the Secretary of the Senate and the Semiannual Report of the Architect of the Capitol. Current major projects for the office include a full color version of the History of the
U.S. Botanic Garden 18611991, Headlines in Senate History a compilation prepared by the Senate Historical Office, and the U.S. Senate Catalogue of Graphic
Art a companion volume to the fine art catalogue.

130
Hearing Billing Verification
Senate committees often use outside reporting companies to transcribe their hearings. The OPDS processes billing verifications for these transcription services ensuring that costs billed to the Senate are accurate. During 2005, OPDS provided commercial reporting companies and corresponding Senate committees a total of 949
billing verifications of Senate hearings and business meetings, a 20 percent increase
over the previous year. Over 66,000 transcribed pages were processed at a total billing cost of over $426,000.
The OPDS utilizes a program developed in conjunction with the Sergeant at Arms
Computer Division that provides more billing accuracy and greater information
gathering capacity, and adheres to the guidelines established by the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration for commercial reporting companies to bill the
Senate for transcription services. During 2005 the office continued processing all file
transfers between committees and reporting companies electronically, ensuring efficiency and accuracy. Department staff continues training to apply todays expanding
digital technology to improve performance and services.

HEARING TRANSCRIPT AND BILLING VERIFICATIONS

Billing Verifications ......................................................

Average per Committee ................................................
Total Transcribed Pages ...............................................
Average Pages/Committee ............................................
Transcribed Pages Cost ................................................
Average Cost/Committee ..............................................

2003

2004

2005

975
51.3
70,532
3,712
$461,807
$24,288

787
41.4
56,262
2,961
$366,904
$19,311

949
49.9
66,597
3,505
$426,815
$22,463

Percent change
2005/2004

20.6
20.6
18.4
18.4
16.3
16.3

Additionally, the Service Center within the OPDS is staffed by experienced GPO
detailees that provide Senate committees and the Secretary of the Senates office
with complete publishing services for hearings, committee prints, and the preparation of the Congressional Record. These services include keyboarding, proofreading,
scanning, and composition. The Service Center provides the best management of
funds available through the Congressional Printing and Binding Appropriation as
committees have been able to decrease or eliminate additional overtime costs associated with the preparation of hearings.
Document Services
The Document Services Section coordinates requests for printed legislation and
miscellaneous publications with other departments within the Secretarys Office,
Senate committees, and the GPO. This section ensures that the most current
version of all material is available, and that sufficient quantities are available to
meet projected demands. The Congressional Record, a printed record of Senate and
House floor proceedings, Extension of Remarks, Daily Digest and miscellaneous
pages, is one of the many printed documents provided by the office on a daily basis.
In addition to the Congressional Record, the office processed and distributed 9,984
distinct legislative items in 2005, including Senate and House bills, resolutions,
committee and conference reports and executive documents.

CONGRESSIONAL RECORD STATISTICS

2003

2004

2005

Pages Printed:
For the Senate ..................................................................................
For the House ....................................................................................

16,835
16,259

12,642
14,243

16,393
18,394

Total Pages Printed ......................................................................

33,094

26,885

34,787

Copies Printed and Distributed:

To the Senate ....................................................................................
To the House .....................................................................................
To the Executive Branch and the Public ..........................................

307,917
441,735
449,750

227,192
331,165
323,957

295,366
397,327
356,770

Total Copies Printed and Distributed ..........................................

1,199,402

882,314

1,049,463

131
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD STATISTICSContinued
2003

2004

2005

Production Costs:
Senate Costs .....................................................................................
House Costs ......................................................................................
Other Costs .......................................................................................

$9,886,805
$9,563,592
$693,141

$7,961,741
$9,026,893
$555,010

$6,640,823
$8,933,244
$440,639

Total Production Costs .................................................................

$20,143,538

$17,543,644

$16,014,706

Although accessing legislative documents through the World Wide Web is popular,
there is still a strong need for printed documents. The OPDS continually tracks demand for all classifications of Congressional legislation and twice yearly adjusts the
number of documents ordered in each category to closely match demand. As a result, document waste has decreased significantly over the past several years.
Customer Service
The primary responsibility of the OPDS is to provide services to the Senate. However, the office also has a responsibility to the general public, the press, and other
government agencies. Requests for legislative material are received at the walk-in
counter, through the mail, by fax, and electronically. In 2005, ordering of legislative
documents on-line increased by 260 percent. The Legislative Hot List Link, where
Members and staff can confirm arrival of printed copies of the most sought after
legislative documents, is popular. The site is updated several times daily each time
new documents arrive from GPO to the Document Room. In addition, the office handled thousands of phone calls pertaining to the Senates official printing, document
requests and legislative questions. Recorded messages, fax, and e-mail operate
around the clock and are processed as they are received in addition to mail requests.
The office stresses prompt, courteous and accurate answers to Senate and public requests.

SUMMARY OF ANNUAL CUSTOMER SERVICE STATISTICS

Year

2003 .........................................................................................
2004 .........................................................................................
2005 .........................................................................................

Congress/
session

108/1st
108/2nd
109/1st

Public mail

FAX request

On-line request

Counter request

1,469
1,137
1,369

2,596
2,229
2,326

735
564
1,464

53,040
36,780
40,105

On-Demand Publication
The office produces additional copies of legislation as needed in the DocuTech
Service Center which is staffed by experienced GPO detailees. On-demand printing
and binding of bills and reports is provided to Member offices and Senate committees. In March 2004, the office coordinated the installation of a new, improved
DocuTech high-speed digital copier and production publisher. This machine decreases the quantities of documents printed directly from GPO and increases the
ability to reprint documents on-demand on a larger scale. The DocuTech is
networked with GPO allowing print files to be sent back and forth electronically.
It also provides the advantage of quickly printing necessary legislation for the Senate floor and other offices in the event of a GPO COOP situation. During 2005, the
DocuTech Center produced 530 tasks for a total of 891,871 printed pages, a 35 percent increase over the previous year.
Accomplishments and Future Goals
The OPDS experienced an increased volume of business during 2005. Staff members attended both technical and management continuing education courses, always
working toward the goal of providing customers, the Senate community and the
public, with prompt and accurate service. Future goals include working with the
GPO on improving job flow procedures. This includes sending customers electronic
proofs for print jobs, as well as developing new database reports on serial set publications for the Senate Library and inventory tracking of materials housed in the
new Senate Materials Facility. The Office of Printing and Document Services continues to seek new ways to use technology to assist Members and staff with added
services and improved access to information.

132
13. OFFICE OF PUBLIC RECORDS

The Office of Public Records receives, processes, and maintains records, reports,
and other documents filed with the Secretary of the Senate involving the Federal
Election Campaign Act, as amended; the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995; the Senate Code of Official Conduct: Rule 34, Public Financial Disclosure; Rule 35, Senate
Gift Rule Filings; Rule 40, Registration of Mass Mailing; Rule 41, Political Fund
Designees; and Rule 41(6), Supervisors Reports on Individuals Performing Senate
Services; and Foreign Travel Reports.
The office provides for the inspection, review, and reproduction of these documents. From October 2004, through September 2005, the Public Records office staff
assisted more than 2,200 individuals seeking information from reports filed with the
office. This figure does not include assistance provided by telephone, nor assistance
given to lobbyists attempting to comply with the provisions of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995. A total of 102,977 photocopies were sold in the period. In addition,
the office works closely with the Federal Election Commission, the Senate Select
Committee on Ethics and the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives concerning
the filing requirements of the aforementioned Acts and Senate rules.
Fiscal Year 2005 Accomplishments
The office developed on-site scanning redundancy with other offices under the Office of the Secretary. The office also modernized the on-site public access software.
Automation Activities
During fiscal year 2005, the Senate Office of Public Records developed the capacity to be able to scan time-sensitive documents in the event of a breakdown of the
principal scanner.
Federal Election Campaign Act, as Amended
The Act requires Senate candidates to file quarterly reports in a non-election year.
Filings totaled 4,447 documents containing 278,264 pages.
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995
The Act requires semi-annual financial and lobbying activity reports. As of September 30, 2005, 6,485 registrants represented 20,099 clients and employed 32,890
individuals who met the statutory definition of lobbyist. The total number of lobbying registrations and reports processed was 49,401.
Public Financial Disclosure
The filing date for Public Financial Disclosure Reports was May 16, 2005. The reports were available to the public and press by Tuesday, June 14th. Copies were
provided to the Select Committee on Ethics and the appropriate State officials. A
total of 2,900 reports and amendments was filed containing 15,878 pages. There
were 301 requests to review or receive copies of the documents.
Senate Rule 35 (Gift Rule)
The Senate Office of Public Records has received over 1,691 reports during fiscal
year 2005.
Registration of Mass Mailing
Senators are required to file mass mailings on a quarterly basis. The number of
pages was 558.
14. SENATE SECURITY

The Office of Senate Security (OSS) was established under the Secretary of the
Senate by Senate Resolution 243 (100th Congress, 1st Session). The Office is responsible for the administration of classified information programs in Senate offices and
committees. In addition, OSS serves as the Senates liaison to the Executive Branch
in matters relating to the security of classified information in the Senate. This report covers the period from January 1, 2005 through December 31, 2005.
Personnel Security
Four hundred eighty-five Senate employees held one or more security clearances
at the end of 2005. This number does not include clearances for employees of the
Architect of the Capitol or for Congressional Fellows assigned to Senate offices. OSS
also processes these clearances.
OSS processed 2,361 personnel security actions in 2005, a 24 percent increase
from 2004. One hundred-seven investigations for new security clearances were initiated last year, and 58 security clearances were transferred from other agencies.
Senate regulations, as well as some Executive Branch regulations, require that indi-

133
viduals granted Top Secret security clearances be reinvestigated at least every five
years. Staff holding Secret security clearances are reinvestigated every ten years.
During the past 12 months, reinvestigations were initiated on 70 Senate employees.
OSS processed 218 routine terminations of security clearances during the reporting
period and transmitted 339 outgoing visit requests. The remainder of the personnel
security actions consisted of updating access authorizations and compartments.
Overall, the average time required by the Department of Defense (DOD) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for processing security clearances (by means of
investigation and adjudication) has increased from 260 days to 332 days. The average time for investigations has increased by 27.7 percent relative to 2004. Since the
previous increases for 2002 to 2003 was 66.7 percent and 2003 to 2004 was 25.6
percent, this represents a very significant increase in the last two years. The average time for an initial investigation conducted and adjudicated by the DOD is 305
days from the date that OSS requests the investigation until the letter from DOD
granting the clearance is received in Senate Security. The average time for DOD
initial investigations increased 19.1 percent.
The periodic reinvestigation process averages 385 days, an increase of 42.6 percent relative to 2004. The average time for an initial investigation conducted by the
FBI and adjudicated by DOD is 256 days, while the periodic reinvestigation process
averages 447 days. The FBI investigation with DOD adjudication times represents
an increase of 1.6 percent and 69.3 percent respectively.
Two hundred thirty-nine records checks were conducted at the request of the FBI,
ATF and OPM. One record check each was performed on behalf of OPM and ATF.
The remaining checks were performed for FBI. This represents a 15.5 percent increase in records checks completed by OSS.
Security Awareness
OSS conducted or hosted 75 security briefings for Senate staff. Topics included:
information security, counterintelligence, foreign travel, security managers responsibilities, office security management, and introductory security briefings. This represents a 2 percent increase from 2004.
Document Control
OSS received or generated 2,792 classified documents consisting of 90,217 pages
during calendar year 2005. This is a 0.4 percent decrease in the number of documents received or generated in 2004. Additionally, 67,899 pages from 4,082 classified documents no longer required for the conduct of official Senate business were
destroyed. This represents a 52.9 percent increase in destruction. OSS transferred
700 documents consisting of 26,625 pages to Senate offices or external agencies,
down 40.9 percent from 2004. These figures do not include classified documents received directly by the Appropriations Committee, Armed Services Committee, Foreign Relations Committee, and Select Committee on Intelligence, in accordance with
agreements between OSS and those committees. Overall, Senate Security completed
7,575 document transactions and handled over 184,742 pages of classified material
in 2005, an increase of 40.9 percent.
Secure storage of classified material in the OSS vault was provided for 107 Senators, committees, and support offices. This arrangement minimizes the number of
storage areas throughout the Capitol and Senate office buildings, thereby affording
greater security for classified material.
Secure Meeting Facilities
OSS secure conference facilities were utilized on 919 occasions during 2005. Use
of OSS conference facilities decreased 19.7 percent from 2004 levels. Five hundred
forty-six meetings, briefings, or hearings were conducted in OSS three conference
rooms. Of those, twelve were All Senators briefings and six were hearings. OSS
also provided to Senators and staff secure telephones, secure computers, secure facsimile machine, and secure areas for reading and production of classified material
on 373 occasions in 2005.
15. STATIONERY ROOM

The mission of the Keeper of the Stationery is:

To sell stationery items for use by Senate offices and other authorized legislative organizations.
To select a variety of stationery items to meet the needs of the Senate environment on a day-to-day basis and maintain a sufficient inventory of these items.
To purchase supplies utilizing open market procurement, competitive bid and/
or GSA Federal Supply Schedules.

134
To maintain individual official stationery expense accounts for Senators, Committees, and Officers of the Senate.
To render monthly expense statements.
To insure receipt of reimbursements for all purchases by the client base via direct payments or through the certification process.
To make payments to all vendors of record for supplies and services in a timely
manner and certify receipt of all supplies and services.
To provide delivery of all purchased supplies to the requesting offices.
Fiscal Year 2005
Statistics

Fiscal Year 2004

Statistics

Gross Sales .............................................................................................................................

Sales Transactions ..................................................................................................................
Purchase Orders Issued ..........................................................................................................
Vouchers Processed .................................................................................................................
Mass Transit Media Sold ........................................................................................................
$20.00 ............................................................................................................................
$10.00 ............................................................................................................................
$5.00 ..............................................................................................................................

$5,247,163
60,247
8,611
9,206
75,607
64,527
3,923
7,157

$4,740,221
58,682
6,741
7,485
67,836
60,564
3,923
3,148

Time Employees (FTE) .............................................................................................................

13

13

Fiscal Year 2005 Highlights and Projects

Flag Purchase Modernization Project.During fiscal year 2005, with the assistance of the Architect of the Capitol and the Senate Sergeant at Arms, the Stationery
Room embarked on a program to develop a method in which Member offices could
purchase flags which had been flown over the Capitol, but were not date or occasion
specific. Research revealed that approximately 37 percent of all flag requests by constituents were only to obtain a flag flown over the Capitol. It was reasoned that if
flags could be flown in advance, significant wait times could be reduced. Thus, the
Senate Sergeant at Arms PG&DM Division created artwork for a generic
customizable flag certificate, along with a CD template that could be used in the
customization process. All flags which have been pre-flown come with a Certificate
of Authenticity signed by the Architect, certifying each flag has been flown over the
United States Capitol. Currently this program is in use by a pilot group of Member
offices.
Senate Service Award Project.At the end of fiscal year 2004, authorization was
granted to proceed in the development of a program to recognize Senate staff who
have completed twenty and thirty years of Senate service. Working closely with the
Committee on Rules and Administration, the Senate Disbursing Office and Stationery Room vendors, a new Service Award Certificate was developed. This project
resulted in the presentation of approximately 540 certificates to staff members who
were employed in the Senate as of September 2004.
Mass Transit Subsidy Electronic Submissions.This project came to fruition with
a fully functional application developed in-house by the Senate Sergeant at Arms
Information and Technologys Research and Development team. This application allows users to submit their requests for Mass Transit media via a web-based solution. Once submitted, the request is filled by Stationery Room staff and notification
is made to the requesting office that their media is ready. The Senate currently has
120 offices participating in the Mass Transit Subsidy Program of which 97 offices
are submitting requests electronically.
Senate Support Facility.A new off-site facility affords the Stationery Room a
1,800 square foot secure work area along with an additional pallet storage area
which will accommodate 190 pallets of merchandise. Stationery Room staff is also
working on logistical and additional usage functions in this modern facility as a tenant user, including the ability to use the assigned space as a distribution center for
product.
Computer Modernization.For over two years, the Stationery Room has worked
to achieve modernization of its aged computer system. These efforts culminated in
the rollout on August 4, 2005 of a new, state of the art sequel-based retail point
of sale and accounting system. The base product installation will allow the Stationery Room to manage its inventory by location; provide account holders with detailed monthly transaction information; eliminate paper transaction storage with information stored for retrieval from the system on demand, and a host of other features that new technology now provides.

135
16. WEB TECHNOLOGY

The Office of Web Technology is responsible for web sites that fall under the purview of the Secretary of the Senate, including: the Senate website, www.senate.gov
(except individual Senator and Committee pages); the Secretary website on Webster;
an intranet site currently used for file-sharing by Secretary staff only; and a
LegBranch web server housing web sites and project materials which can be
accessed by staff at other Legislative Branch agencies.
The Senate Web site (www.senate.gov)
The United States Senate Web site celebrated its 10 year anniversary in 2005.
The first U.S. Senate home page on the World Wide Web was announced October
20, 1995 on the Senate floor. From the Senate homepage members of the public
could easily find the homepages for their own Senators. As the World Wide Web
grew, so did the content and mission of Senate.gov. The pages of information became catalogs and databases, but the mission to provide the public with accurate
and timely information remained constant.
The second Senate home page, introduced in January 1997, provided a graphical
interface, a virtual tour of the Capitol, access to Senate committee pages, and improved access to legislative data. Information about institutional procedures, history, and statistical records were also new to the site.
Senate floor and committee schedule information was provided when the 106th
Congress convened and the third home page was launched on January 6, 1999. The
site received a Federal Design Award, issued by the National Endowment for the
Arts and the General Services Administration. The award recognized the site for
humaniz[ing] the venerable institution of the Senate by making its everyday activities and rich history readily accessible to the public.
The Senates fourth home page was launched in October 2002 and included the
functionality of a powerful, behind-the-scenes content management system. The previous web sites were maintained by a small team of 5 staff who knew HTML and
could code content for display in web browsers. This new system allowed non-technical subject experts to post information to the Web site, greatly increasing the
amount of relevant information available to the public. Over 30 contributors from
eleven departments in the offices of the Secretary and the Sergeant at Arms now
publish text and images on the Web site.
In 2005 the newest graphical interface was designed for www.senate.gov, bringing
more content to the front page, and providing access to Senators websites from
every page on the site. To help visitors find information, links to popular features
were added to the homepage and a new site-wide search, available from every page,
was introduced.
The SAA conducted a feasibility study to evaluate the search appliance to see if
it is compatible with the Senate environment. Secretary staff did extensive testing
during the evaluation period and determined that the new search would work for
senate.gov. This department also participated in developing the custom tag for use
by Senate offices who want to put a search feature on their own web pages to search
only their own web site content.
There were more than 50 million visitors to the Senate website in 2005five
times more than the estimated 8 million visitors in 2001. The latest changes and
additions to the Senate Web site will greatly assist these visitors in connecting with
their Senators and in finding the information they seek.
Senate.gov Web Development Projects
Web Technology staff worked with content providers to create several special features for the Senate website:
The Political Cartoons of Puck Exhibit
Puck, a satirical weekly magazine that parodied the American political scene was
one of the most popular periodicals of the late 19th century. The new Puck Exhibit
on senate.gov includes slideshows of Puck cartoons and Take the Puck Challenge,
an innovative, interactive series of riddles designed to give readers insight to the
political satire.
Birds of the Brumidi Corridors Exhibit
Constantino Brumidi included designs for more than 350 individual birds of at
least 100 species in his paintings in the Senate corridors. A new exhibit on senate.gov features these paintings of birds in several slideshow presentations.

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World War II: The Senate and the Nations Capitol
This slideshow photo exhibit focuses on the Senate and the role it played in supporting the war effort and its aftermath and honors the brave men and women of
World War II who sacrificed so much to preserve the ideals of liberty and representative democracy.
LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEM (LIS) PROJECT

The Legislative Information System (LIS) is a mandated system (Section 8 of the

1997 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2 U.S.C. 123e) that provides desktop
access to the content and status of legislative information and supporting documents. The 1997 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act (2 U.S.C. 181) also established a program for providing the widest possible exchange of information among
legislative branch agencies. The long-range goal of the LIS Project is to provide a
comprehensive Senate Legislative Information System to capture, store, manage,
and distribute Senate documents. Several components of the LIS have been implemented, and the project is currently focused on a Senate-wide implementation and
transition to a standard system for the authoring and exchange of legislative documents that will greatly enhance the availability and re-use of legislative documents
within the Senate and with other legislative branch agencies. The LIS Project Office
manages the project.
Background: LISAP
An April 1997 joint Senate and House report recommended establishment of a
data standards program, and in December 2000, the Senate Committee on Rules
and Administration and the Committee on House Administration jointly accepted
the Extensible Markup Language (XML) as the primary data standard to be used
for the exchange of legislative documents and information.
Following the implementation of the Legislative Information System (LIS) in January 2000, the LIS Project Office shifted its focus to the data standards program
and established the LIS Augmentation Project (LISAP). The over-arching goal of the
LISAP is to provide a Senate-wide implementation and transition to XML for the
authoring and exchange of legislative documents.
The current focus for the LISAP is the development and implementation of an
XML authoring system for legislative documents produced by the Office of the Senate Legislative Counsel (SLC) and the Office of the Enrolling Clerk. The XML authoring application is called LEXA, an acronym for the Legislative Editing in XML
Application. LEXA features many automated functions that provide a more efficient
and consistent document authoring process. The LIS Project Office has worked very
closely with the SLC to create an application that meets the needs for legislative
drafting.
LISAP: 2005
The SLC began using LEXA to draft legislation in early 2004. The SLC offered
valuable feedback throughout that year on LEXAs continued development as new
features were added and additional document types, such as amendments and reported bills, were added. Just prior to the beginning of the 109th Congress, the LIS
Project Office provided a one-day training course on several new and enhanced features of LEXA, and the SLC began 2005 creating 60 percent of their drafts of introduced bills and resolutions in XML. By the end of the session, 80 percent of all introduced and reported bills and resolutions (and countless amendments) had been
created in XML. Several very large drafts were created in XML, including the energy bill and the highway bill. Feedback and development continued throughout
2005. Additional features and document typesconference reports, constitutional
amendments, and engrossed and enrolled billswere added to LEXA. LEXAs authoring environment offers many automated document creation functions, providing
a faster, more consistent drafting process.
As LEXA becomes more widely used in the SLC and other offices, support of the
application becomes increasingly important. The 2004 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act directed the Government Printing Office (GPO) to provide support for
LEXA. GPO took over maintenance and support of the software module that converts a Senate XML document to locator for printing through Microcomp, and is now
updating the software to print House XML documents. GPO is also working to solve
problems with the software that creates and prints tables, and that table tool will
be replaced with a more robust one sometime in 2006.
The LIS Project Office worked closely with several key House, GPO, and Library
of Congress groups involved in the XML project to ensure that the House and Senate XML authoring applications produce compatible electronic and printed documents that may be exchanged among the organizations processing the documents.

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The groups held several meetings in August and agreed to use the same tools to
create tables and print XML documents through Microcomp. The House and Senate
software development groups also reached agreement on several technical authoring
issues and standards, thereby eliminating the need for additional processing when
a document is exchanged between the House and the Senate.
The project to convert the compilations of current law to an XML format was completed in early September. Staff in the House and Senate Legislative Counsel Offices update the compilations, and both groups participated in the project. The compilations are used as the basis for many legislative drafts and having the XML data
will make it easier for both offices to use the text of compilations for drafting legislation in XML.
The LIS Project Office provides support for LEXA via the LEXA HelpLine and
LEXA website. The HelpLine is provided through a single phone number that rings
on all the phones in the office, and the website is located on a server accessible by
the legislative branch. The website, legbranch.senate.gov/lis/lexa, is used to distribute updates of the application to GPO and provides access to release notes, the
reference manual, and other user aids. The Office continued to update the LEXA
Reference Manual as new features were added to LEXA. The manual provides
screen shots and step-by-step instructions for all LEXA features. The Office also
trained new SLC staff and the Enrolling Clerks on LEXA and provided several demonstrations on new LEXA features throughout the year.
The document management system (DMS) for the SLC will be implemented once
the SLC has completed the transition from XyWrite to LEXA. The Systems Development Services group of the Office of the Sergeant at Arms continues to update the
DMS to the most recent releases of Documentum and verifies that all SLC requirements will be met. The Systems Development Services group provides support and
maintenance for the LIS/DMS, and that group will also support the DMS for the
SLC once it is deployed. The LIS Project Office has been monitoring the upgrade
effort and will contract for transition training to be developed and delivered prior
to implementation. The DMS will be integrated with LEXA and will provide a powerful tracking, management, and delivery tool.
LISAP: 2006
The Office of the Enrolling Clerk will begin to use LEXA to produce engrossed
and enrolled bills in XML from the XML versions of introduced and reported bills.
The Legislative Branch XML Technical Committee will work together to develop the
document type definitions for creating appropriations bills. Once the definitions are
completed and validated, the LIS Project Office will enhance LEXA to add the ability to create appropriations language, starting first with appropriations amendments created by the SLC. Following that, we hope to begin discussions with the
Appropriations committee staff that prepare the bills for printing.
The LIS Project Office will continue to work with the SLC and the Office of the
Enrolling Clerk to refine and enhance LEXA so that more and more of the documents produced by those offices will be done in XML. Once all of the documents
can be produced in XML using LEXA, those offices will be able to stop using XyWrite. Since XyWrite is not compatible with other Windows software, moving away
from it will allow the offices to use more modern technologies for all functions. For
example, eliminating XyWrite will finally give the SLC the opportunity to implement a document management system and automate other office functions. Other
Senate offices that do drafting with XyWrite may begin using LEXA, including the
Committee on Appropriations. Thus far in the second session of the 109th Congress,
approximately 96 percent of introduced bills and resolutions have been created as
XML documents.
The legislative process yields other types of documents such as the Senate and
Executive Journals and the Legislative and Executive Calendars. Much of the data
and information included in these documents is already captured in and distributed
through the LIS/DMS database used by the clerks in the Office of the Secretary.
The LIS/DMS captures data that relates to legislation including bill and resolution
numbers, amendment numbers, sponsors, co-sponsors, and committees of referral.
This information is currently entered into the database and verified by the clerks
and then keyed into the respective documents and reverified at GPO before printing.
An interface between this database and the electronic documents could mutually exchange data. For example, the LIS/DMS database could insert the bill number, additional co-sponsors, and committee of referral into an introduced bill while the bill
draft document could supply the official and short titles of the bill to the database.
The Congressional Record, like the Journals and Calendars, includes data that is
contained in and reported by the LIS/DMS database. Preliminary DTDs have been
designed for these documents, and applications could be built to construct XML doc-

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ument components by extracting and tagging the LIS/DMS data. These applications
would provide a faster, more consistent assembly of these documents and would enhance the ability to index and search their contents. The LIS Project Office will coordinate with the Systems Development Services Branch of the Office of the Sergeant at Arms to begin design and development of XML applications and interfaces
for the LIS/DMS and legislative documents. As more and more legislative data and
documents are provided in XML formats that use common elements across all document types, the Library of Congress will be able to expand the LIS Retrieval System
to provide more content-specific searches.
NEW TECHNOLOGY IN THE SENATE

Senator ALLARD. Thank you for your leadership. Businesses and

agencies have to make constant decisions about the technology that
they use in their offices. You have shared with us some of the high
tech services that youre providing to the public and to Members
of the Senate. How does your office continue to take advantage of
technological developments and incorporate them into your services
provided to the Senate, when do you determine that the technology
has ripened to the point where you can bring it in and not create
a lot of problems? How do you make those kind of decisions?
Ms. REYNOLDS. You know thats a great question, and the Sergeant at Arms is very much a partner with us in any technological
development, as they, as you know better than I, certainly have the
lead in this for the Senate. I think the pilot projects, I mentioned
the flag project in particular, we have a number of pilots going
with disbursing through our financial management information
system. The best way for us to determine when something is ripe
if you will, or ready for a roll out is because weve been through
that pilot phase and weve worked directly with Senate offices to
understand what works and what doesnt work, so theyre invaluable to us in that feedback.
But youre right, staying ahead of that curve, whether its something small, like being able to book the LBJ room online, or order
your paper online for your office through printing and documents
to something as large as our Senate amendment tracking system,
or our FMIS project with disbursing, were constantly striving to
serve this community better.
And I also want to make one quick mention as well, on the
website of a new addition that hopefully will be rolled out this
year, because as Ive said, keeping that website fresh, especially for
the public, is important to us. And there should be one addition
coming there on the Senate desks, which I think will be of enormous interest to you and your colleagues and also to the public. Actually going in and looking at each desk, explaining its history,
talking about the conservation of the desk. So again, from simple
things to large, and again remaining current for the public were
constantly striving to stay ahead of the curve if you will.
LOBBYING DISCLOSURE REPORTS

Senator ALLARD. Very good. Im going to move on to the Office

of Public Records, which is under your jurisdiction as Office of the
Secretary of the Senate. Were looking at lobbying reform, and it
has the potential to increase filings by a considerable amount as
I understand it. Could you give me an overview of that operation

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and tell me whether you have sufficient resources to implement a
significant increase in filings?
Ms. REYNOLDS. I really appreciate that question and obviously
theres been a great deal of discussion here in these last few weeks
alone. Our public records office has been in the business of receiving those lobbying disclosure reports now, for just over a decade,
since the passage of the LDA. And as you well know we currently
receive those filings twice a year, mid-February and again mid-August. I have a couple of statistics for you that are also in our written report. There are roughly 6,500 registrants who represent just
over 20,000 clients. They employ almost 33,000 individuals, so its
a big number. All told that means that our Office of Public Records,
reviews about 45,000 documents a year.
Im also very proud that the lobbying community has been able
to e-file with the Senate since the year 2000. And in fact since
2001, lobbying reports and registrations as far back as 1998 have
been posted on senate.gov for public access. Our role in public
records with regard to the LDA is an administrative role. We do
not have the enforcement authority. That belongs to the U.S. attorney of the District of Columbia. But since 2003 we have referred
approximately 2,100 registrants to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Virtually all potential nonfiling and a handful for noncompliance. Im
particularly grateful for the second part of your question, because
obviously no one is precisely sure at the moment where this journey ultimately takes us. And while were staying on top of the situation I may well be back to this subcommittee at the appropriate
time to make a plea, first of all for time, because if there is substantial change that we undergo in the receipt of these documents
we will need time to implement, and second of all the potential for
additional resources exists.
But I think with your permission if we could continue to stay in
touch on this as this issue evolves we would be very grateful.
Senator ALLARD. Yes. As we get a clearer view of what the legislation might look like, we do want to stay in touch with your office
in that regard.
Ms. REYNOLDS. Thank you, that would be very helpful.
STUDY OF SENATE STAFF PAY

Senator ALLARD. I just have a couple of other brief questions just

for the record. Last year your office received funds to conduct a pay
study of Senate employees, and can you tell me what the status of
this study is?
Ms. REYNOLDS. The study is in draft form. In fact we were talking about working groups, we have a working group coming together this afternoon with office administrators and chiefs of staff
to review our first draft. So it is in process, and hopefully well
have the study out to the community here within the next month.
Senator ALLARD. Good.
Ms. REYNOLDS. I appreciate you asking the question too, if I
might make one plea to those watching today. For the study to be
effective and for it to produce the kind of results that the community is hoping for in terms of looking at hiring practices, benefits,
salaries and so forth, we need as much participation as possible.

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So thanks for mentioning it today, so I can make my plea to our
Senate offices to help us with this survey.
FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION ONLINE FILING

Senator ALLARD. And finally, if the Senate moves to online Federal Election Commission (FEC) filing, for campaign committees,
what resources will your office need to make this conversion?
Would you comment on that?
Ms. REYNOLDS. Yes sir. Like most everything else around here,
were poised to act when the Senate acts, but I think on this one,
just like with lobbying disclosure if there is substantial change
coming our way, and if the Senate decides to move to e-filing, we
will need time. A minimum of 6 months and possibly up to 1 year
to be able to implement the program and there will be a need for
additional resources. Were still looking at those numbers and some
are dependent on what hardware, what software needs well have
at that time. So again so I may be back hat in hand depending on
those decisions made.
Senator ALLARD. Your main demand would be for basically hardware to process the electronic filing?
Ms. REYNOLDS. Right. Hardware
Senator ALLARD. But it seems to me you would need fewer people, because you wouldnt have to have that data entry that you
have.
Ms. REYNOLDS. Possibly, but were a pretty lean and mean operation in public records right now. I think our total staff there right
now, is nine. And for example on lobbying disclosures there are
three people on a daily basis dedicated to lobbying disclosure but
when those reports start to hit in mid-February, mid-August, everybody helps out. So wed be happy to take a look at that, as I
said, we run a pretty lean and mean shop with folks who are capable of multitasking when the need arises.
Senator ALLARD. Just asking you to look at it carefully.
Ms. REYNOLDS. We shall.
Senator ALLARD. Im sure you will.
Ms. REYNOLDS. Thank you.
Senator ALLARD. Thank you for your testimony. We dont have
any other questions from the subcommittee, and so we wont tie up
your time, I know youre busy and Ill call up the second panel.
Ms. REYNOLDS. Thank you sir.

ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL

STATEMENT OF ALAN M. HANTMAN, FAIA, ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
ACCOMPANIED BY:
STEPHEN AYERS, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
MARK WEISS, DIRECTOR, CAPITOL POWER PLANT
WELCOMING REMARKS

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now we turn to the second panel. And

before I make my formal remarks. I just want to recognize Mark
Weiss whos now our new Director of the Capitol Power Plant, and
Mark, welcome. And now, well turn to the Architect of the Capitol,
to review the fiscal year 2007 budget request. Again welcome Mr.
Hantman and Chief Operating Officer Stephen Ayers. Mr. Ayers
was named Chief Operating Officer on Monday.
Mr. AYERS. Yes sir.
Senator ALLARD. Youve been in the position on an acting basis
for several months and I think you did a good job then.
Mr. AYERS. Thank you.
FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET CONCERNS

Senator ALLARD. We congratulate you on this new position and

wish you the best of luck. The AOC budget request totals $588 million, an increase of $164 million or 38 percent, over the current
budget. This is the largest increase proposed by any Federal agency
for the fiscal year 2007. While I commend the process your agency
has developed, you prioritized major construction projects, clearly
we need to do some paring back. There are a number of large
projects in the budget, including $54 million for a new Library of
Congress warehouse at Fort Meade, $20.6 million to complete the
Capitol Visitor Center, $19 million for renovations to the infrastructure and the Dirksen Senate Office Building, and $15.9 million to replace the fire alarm system in the Hart Senate Office
Building. Other large increases in the budget include $20 million
for 91 new employees for the CVC operation, and a $10 million increase for information technology projects.
SAFETY HAZARDS IN THE UTILITY TUNNELS

While these projects may be meritorious, and urgently needed,

we will need to scrub each of them carefully and only fund the very
highest priorities. In addition to budget issues, wed like to discuss
the complaint recently filed by the Office of Compliance for AOCs
failure to comply with the citation issued almost 6 years ago directing the AOC to correct serious safety hazards in the utility tunnels
by 2002. This is the first time the Office of Compliance has issued
a complaint, demonstrating the magnitude of this very serious
(141)

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problem. The hazards include structural deficiencies that could
lead to cave-ins, inadequate communication systems for workers in
the tunnels, and inadequate means of egress.
Finally we look forward to an update on projects that are currently underway as well as your efforts to address management
challenges identified by the Government Accountability Office. Before I turn to you for your testimony Mr. Hantman, I want to ask
the ranking member who just arrived if he has any comments.
Senator DURBIN. Mr. Chairman I apologize, we have an immigration bill markup in Judiciary, one floor above and Ive spent time
back and forth, and Im sorry that I came in late for this. I want
to get into the whole question about the safety aspects of the workplace at CVC and particularly this troubling report about the presence of asbestos in the tunnels and the danger that it creates for
the employees that could be inhaling these lethal time bombs. I
was not aware of how serious this was, or how long it had been
pending for a resolution. I think it should have been taken care of
years ago. I dont know how many workers have been exposed, if
anyI pray to God none. But if they have weve done them a great
disservice. I thank you for your continuing oversight on this project
and I will stay to ask some specific questions as time allows.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for scheduling todays second budget oversight hearing
of fiscal year 2007 where we will hear testimony on the budget requests of the Secretary of the Senate and the Architect of the Capitol.
I want to join the Chairman in welcoming todays witnesses, Emily Reynolds, Secretary of the Senate, and Alan Hantman, Architect of the Capitol.
Thanks to both of you for attending this morning.
Ms. Reynolds, welcome back to the subcommittee for your fourth year as Secretary of the Senate. I think that you and your staff are doing a superb job and
your budget request looks very straightforward.
My staff and I greatly appreciate your guidance and leadership in the CVC decision-making progress. I realize that this has been a long, difficult, and at times frustrating process. Your dedication and determination are very admirable.
I would appreciate any comments you might wish to include with regard to the
CVC.
Mr. Hantman, first of all I would like to acknowledge the outstanding day to day
work of all of your employees. I think its easy to overlook the hard work that goes
into the seamless running of this complex on a daily basis. This is a very well qualified and hard-working group of men and women and I appreciate their contribution
to this complex. I think we should all extend our gratitude to them for their service.
I would like to especially thank Carlos Elias, Don White, Barbara Wolanin, and
Adrienne Powers, of your staff for their extra efforts on behalf of my staff in the
Assistant Democratic Leaders office.
I would like to welcome Mr. Stephen Ayers, who has just been named as Chief
Operating Officer at AOC. Mr. Ayers has been serving as Acting COO for quite some
time and Im glad to see that he will be serving in this capacity permanently.
Mr. Hantman, I am encouraged by the overall progress your office is making in
the area of worker safety. However I am deeply concerned about the situation involving the workers in the utility tunnels. The OSHA complaint recently filed by
the Office of Compliance citing potentially life threatening working conditions in
the utility tunnels that provide steam and chilled water throughout the Capitol complex presents a situation that must be addressed immediately.
This situation was first brought to your attention in 2000. However, since then,
it appears that very little has been done to address the very serious problems that
exist in these tunnels.
I am particularly troubled by the presence of asbestos in the tunnels. I have met
with so many families who have been affected by asbestos-related illnesses in my
work outside of this subcommittee. When these workers are inhaling these fibers

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they are inhaling time bombs. I doubt the workers in these tunnels realize how serious this situation is.
I hope you will update the Subcommittee on the steps you are taking to expedite
the repair of these tunnels. Chairman Allard and I recently granted you the authority to reprogram $1.8 million for a portion of this work and I think thats a step
in the right direction. But this situation must be completely resolved as soon as possible so that these workers lives are not put in jeopardy by merely doing their jobs.
Frankly, it should have been taken care of years ago.
Last month in their report entitled, Architect of the CapitolManagement Challenges Remain,GAO noted that you have still not filled several leadership positions on your staff such as Chief Financial Officer, Chief Administrative Officer, Director of Congressional and External Relations, and Director of Planning and
Project Management. I am glad that you recently filled the long-vacant position of
Director of the Capitol Power Plant. However, I hope you will explain to the subcommittee when you plan to fill these other crucial positions.
Finally, Mr. Hantman, Chairman Allard has already summarized your fiscal year
2007 budget request so I wont repeat the details. I do want to emphasize, however,
the importance of prioritizing your requests. It troubles me to see a $54 million request for a Library of Congress construction project while very serious repair and
maintenance problems exist around the complex. In a time of tight budget constraints such as this, new construction projects should have to take a back seat to
important maintenance and repair needs that continue to lag on around this complex.
Thank you Mr. Chairman.

Senator ALLARD. Okay, let me now turn to the Architect of the

Capitol, Mr. Hantman, were looking forward to your testimony.
SUMMARY STATEMENT OF ALAN M. HANTMAN

Mr. HANTMAN. Good morning, Mr. Chairman, Senator Durbin,

thank you for the opportunity to testify today, regarding our fiscal
2007 budget request. My full statement has been submitted for the
record, however I would like to give a brief overview of this request. Mr. Chairman in our role as stewards, the AOC is responsible for 15 million square feet of buildings, and more than 300
acres of land. The Capitol complex is in reality a small city; however its a small city with an aging physical infrastructure, ever
stricter codes and safety criteria to meet, as well as complex security requirements.
Our buildings range from 25 to 200 years old. This means that
there are many projects that require our attention to assure that
these buildings continue to serve as functioning working environments and that we preserve these national treasures entrusted to
our care for generations to come.
Mr. Chairman we did not prepare this budget in a vacuum, unaware of the economic issues our country and this Congress are
facing. I can appreciate the tough choices that this subcommittee
must make as you hear from each legislative branch agency with
its budget request. I can appreciate this because its difficult for me
to rank the relative needs and benefits of necessary security and
fire and life safety projects needed across the Capitol campus.
How do I weigh the needs of the Library of Congress against
those of the Capitol Police, or the Senate Sergeant at Arms against
those of the Chief Administrative Officer of the House? The AOC
is in the position of being a repository, if you will Mr. Chairman,
for the needs of other agencies. They all have real needs that the
AOC then becomes responsible for, and our budget request reflects
these cumulative needs.

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Our projects were prioritized through a progressive sequence of
steps to determine which are most crucial. While its my responsibility as steward of these buildings to bring these needs and issues
to Congress attention, Im also aware that cuts will need to be
made, as you mentioned Mr. Chairman, from that prioritized list.
And Im prepared to work with this subcommittee and other legislative branch agencies to determine which cuts to make so that we
fit within the overall budget structure that this subcommittee ultimately allows.
Mr. Chairman, we prioritize our projects based on a set of criteria that allows us to evaluate the merits of those projects. Facility condition assessments conducted across most of our jurisdictions
measure the current condition of all facilities to assess how much
work is necessary to maintain, or upgrade their conditions to acceptable levels, and to determine the timeframe for this work. We
hope to initiate this process at the Library of Congress, contingent
on the approval of our budget request, so that we fully understand
their facility needs as well. Wed then be able to appropriately
prioritize their project needs based on the same criteria used for
other jurisdictions.
In fact Mr. Chairman, the direction to perform condition assessments was given, and appropriately so, by this subcommittee back
in 2002. And if I may quote from that language.
Condition Assessments Master Plan. The Committee has provided an amount of
$500,000 in the Capitol buildings appropriation and an amount of $1,100,000 in the
Senate Office Building appropriation to initiate a comprehensive condition assessment of the Capitol complex. The assessment will be conducted in tandem with the
development of a master plan for the Capitol complex and will include the collection
of relevant information regarding buildings, inspection and equipment testing of
properties and assets. Analysis and identification of deficiencies, identification of solutions, and costs, a forecast of future renewal requirements, and the development
of long range comprehensive financial plans.

Mr. Chairman, weve been working diligently to fulfill the directives and develop meaningful information which, in fact, GAO has
reviewed. Its important to note that according to the Government
Accountability Office While the FCAsthe facility condition assessments, have enabled AOC to develop a comprehensive plan for
facilities, maintenance, and building renewal, the assessments
have also documented the magnitude of AOCs deferred maintenance and other projects. $2.6 billion over 9 years, and the challenge of funding these projects.
Mr. Chairman, GAOs statement about the challenge of funding
these projects is right on target. In a no-growth budget environment its, of course, particularly challenging. With all due respect,
if these facility infrastructure needs are not addressed within an
appropriate timeframe, our buildings will continue to age and deteriorate and the cost to correct these deficiencies will continue to escalate in future years.
With regard to safety, its a priority at the AOC, therefore Im
pleased to report that for the fifth year in a row, the AOCs injury
and illness rate decreased. Last year we dropped to 5.65 from a
high of 17.9 in fiscal year 2000. This is amazing because were coming down to the level of many white collar organizations in the
Federal agencies as well as across the Government.

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While Im proud of these accomplishments, I will not be satisfied
until we achieve our ultimate goal of a workplace free of injury and
illness. This includes the steam tunnels that were the subject of
the Office of Compliances complaint you discussed. Over the past
several years, in the tunnels, we have rebuilt approximately 600
feet of tunnel roof under Constitution Avenue, at a cost of approximately $5 million. I think you might remember, Mr. Chairman,
that for over 1 year the street on Constitution Avenue was ripped
up. We had to replace the roof of that tunnel, thats one of the first
items identified by our surveys that really needed to be taken care
of up front.
We also contracted for the inspection of 19 tunnel egress points,
developed an egress improvements work plan, replaced the South
Capitol Street steam line, for another $5.5 million and that included making structural repairs to manholes.
We also implemented the in-house tunnel condition monitoring
program last October which includes monitoring, recording and reviewing tunnel conditions daily. While this work was being planned
and implemented, we have been working each year to remove
spalls in areas where the concrete ceiling is damaged. We installed
a leaky cable communication system in the major pathways in the
tunnels. We currently have funding to install cable in the small
stub pathways that come off the main tunnels. We are proceeding
with that work and will get it done within the next months. We
also provided our employees with confined space and asbestos
awareness training.
Mr. Chairman, weve requested $1.75 million in the 2007 budget
to fund priority projects in the tunnels. Weve received approvals
on a $1.8 million reprogramming to continue additional structural
repairs, asbestos abatement, and emergency egress repairs. Significant additional funding will be required and were working to determine the magnitude of that funding now.
In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, as GAO noted in its February 2006
report, we have made significant progress in our transformation
into a more strategic organization. They state that the AOC has
made progress in developing safety policies and establishing a safety training curriculum; has implemented a variety of communication methods to convey information to employees; has taken important initial steps to address the management and structure needed
to establish a sound IT investment management process; has created a clearly defined, well documented and transparent process for
evaluating and prioritizing projects. Were committed to fulfilling
our responsibilities over the long term, although that means we
have to make tough choices, as you indicated Mr. Chairman, with
regard to how we select and prioritize our projects.
Our request for funds in 2007 is directly related to our responsibility as good stewards to maintain and preserve the facilities and
national treasures in our care. Im very proud of our 2,000 dedicated AOC professionals and Im privileged to lead this remarkable
organization.
PREPARED STATEMENT

I greatly appreciate the subcommittees support in helping us

achieve our goals, and once again thank you for this opportunity

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to testify, and Id be happy to answer any questions that you might
have.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

ALAN M. HANTMAN, FAIA

Mr. Chairman, Senator Durbin, members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today regarding our fiscal year 2007 budget request. This request is structured to enable us to continue supporting the Legislative Branch by
ensuring that the Capitol complex is safe and well maintained, our national treasures are preserved and protected, and we continue to provide high quality, efficient,
and effective services to our customers.
STEWARDSHIP AND PRIORITIZING PROJECTS

In our role as stewards, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is responsible for some 15 million square feet of buildings and more than 300 acres of land.
The Capitol complex is, in reality, like a small city. However, it is a small city with
an aging physical infrastructure. Our buildings range from 25 years old for the Librarys Madison Building, to more than 100 years old for the Russell, Cannon, and
Jefferson buildings, to 200 years old for various parts of the Capitol Building. This
means that there are many potential projects that call for our attention to ensure
that these buildings continue to serve as functioning working environments for generations to come.
While it is my responsibility to bring these issues to Congresss attention, it is
obvious that for practical considerations of construction and fiscal restraint, we
must spread out the funding and physical workload over the course of multiple
years. Therefore, we have prioritized these projects to determine which are more
critical than others. In previous budget requests, my focus has been on ensuring
that fire and life-safety deficiencies were corrected. With your support we have devoted significant resources toward protecting the people who work and visit Capitol
Hill by continually working to improve the safety and security of our facilities. Protecting people is, and will continue to be, my top priority as evidenced by the number of fire and life-safety projects in our current budget request.
While developing this budget, we reviewed many annual operating and capital
project requests. We made difficult choices regarding funding AOC operations, new
programs, and high priority capital projects, while at the same time balancing the
day-to-day needs of those we serve.
As a result, before we submitted our current request, we removed $44.3 million
worth of important projects. The $588.3 million we have requested for fiscal year
2007 ($509.4 million without items specific to the House) was submitted in our role
as responsible stewards of our national treasures and in support of the needs of
Congress, while balancing requests for new initiatives.
It is important to note that we prioritize our projects based on a set of objective
criteria that allow us to evaluate the relative merits of each of these projects. At
Congresss direction, starting in 2004, we conducted a series of Facility Condition
Assessments (FCAs) in most of our jurisdictions. We hope to continue the process
with the Library of Congress, contingent on the approval of our fiscal year 2007
budget request. Our plan would be to survey the Library Buildings, in phases, beginning with the Madison Building. By completing FCAs for the Library of Congress
buildings, we would fully understand their existing facility needs and would then
be able to appropriately prioritize LOC projects with the same criteria used for
other jurisdictions. These FCAs provide us with a method for measuring the current
condition of all facilities in a uniform way to assess how much work is necessary
to maintain or upgrade their conditions to acceptable levels to support organizational missions and when this work should occur.
According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in its February 2006 report to Congress, While the FCAs have enabled AOC to develop a comprehensive
plan for facility maintenance and building renewal, the assessments have also documented the magnitude of AOCs deferred maintenance and other projects$2.6 billion over nine yearsand the challenge of funding these projects. What this $2.6
billion breaks down into is a total of $886 million for deferred maintenance and capital renewal projects as identified in the FCAs (excluding the Library of Congress
and the Supreme Court), with the remaining balance identified for capital improvements ($1.1 billion) and capital construction projects ($69 million). Mr. Chairman,
GAOs statement about the challenge of funding these projects is right on target.
In a no-growth budget environment, it is particularly challenging. If these facility
infrastructure needs are not met in appropriate timeframes, the conditions of our

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buildings will continue to deteriorate and the cost to correct these facility maintenance deficiencies will continue to rise.
A very recent example of capital renewal is demonstrated by the issuance of a
complaint by the Office of Compliance (OOC) regarding the utility tunnels which
provide steam and chilled water to the Capitol complex. We are taking a comprehensive approach to addressing the existing issues in the tunnels and are identifying
a logical sequence to the necessary actions that will be taken. We have presented
this plan to the OOC. Over the past several years we have completed these and
other tasks in the utility tunnels: replaced the top of approximately 600 feet of the
tunnel under Constitution Avenue at a cost of approximately $5 million; contracted
for inspection of 19 tunnel egress points and developed an Egress Improvements
Work Plan; replaced the South Capitol Street steam line and vault for approximately $5.5 million which includes making structural repairs to manholes. We have
also implemented an in-house Tunnel Condition Monitoring Program in October
2005 which includes monitoring, recording, and reviewing tunnel conditions daily;
and we have been continually working to remove incipient spalls in areas where the
concrete ceiling is damaged.
We have requested $1.75 million in the fiscal year 2007 budget to fund priority
projects involving the tunnels. We recently received approvals from the Senate and
House on a $1.8 million reprogramming request to continue additional structural repairs, asbestos abatement, and emergency egress repairs in the tunnels. Additional
significant funding will certainly be required and we are working to determine the
magnitude of that funding now.
OVERALL PLANNING PROCESS

In terms of our overall planning process, when all of the Facility Condition Assessments are completed, they are rolled into a five-year Capital Improvement Plan
(CIP). The CIP, which became fully integrated in the fiscal year 2006 budget process, is used to evaluate projects based on an objective set of criteria, including:
Fire and life safety, code compliance, regulatory compliance, and statutory compliance.
Preservation of historic or legacy elements or features of buildings or entire historic structures as a reflection of the importance of stewardship responsibilities.
Impact on our mission, including client urgency.
Economics, including value, economic payback, life cycle cost considerations,
and cost savings.
Physical security, including protection of facilities, Members, staff, and the general public.
The projects are further evaluated based on necessary timeframes and on an evaluation of the conditions of the components and sub-materials. These condition ratings are characterized as one of the following: Adequate, sub-standard, and deficient.
They are then further rated as to the urgency in accomplishing them as follows:
Priority 1Immediate: Safety or code violations, as well as critical equipment
that is either not functioning or close to failure.
Priority 2High: Items need attention in the near term, as failure would impact the mission. Implemented within two to four years.
Priority 3Medium: Implemented within five to seven years.
Priority 4Low: Low priority projects related to aesthetics or minor performance issues. Implemented within 8 to 10 years.
All projects with an immediate urgency are given priority over projects for which
the urgency is high and so on. Additionally, deferred maintenance projects are
generally considered a higher priority than capital renewal. Using the CIP process, once all of the FCAs are complete, we will be able to comparatively vet the
projects to ensure that the most urgent get addressed most quickly. It is this multistep methodology that has been used to produce the fiscal year 2007 Capital Improvement Project Priority List that we submitted for your consideration. Those
projects that can be accommodated within the budget level that is ultimately approved will move forward in fiscal year 2007.
There will continue to be refinements to our project development process. However with implementation of the prioritization process, future program submissions
will clearly be based first on the urgency of accomplishing the project, followed by
consideration as to the type of project and its importance; with emphasis placed on
deferred maintenance projects. These changes will result in an efficient and effective
process and one that seeks to assure accuracy, responsible management of resources, and efficient development of programs.

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Ultimately, the Capitol Complex Master Plan will ensure that we continue to be
good stewards by establishing a framework that helps us prioritize the maintenance,
renovation, and construction of Capitol Hill facilities over the next 5, 10, and 20
years, while also spreading out the costs of that upkeep and construction.
In addition to these new processes we have made changes to our organizational
structure to improve how these projects are carried out. With Congresss approval,
we established the Project Management Division which is charged with consolidating project and construction management functions to provide cradle-to-grave
oversight of our projects. We have developed and implemented new processes that
are designed to improve project tracking and reporting as well as to hold our consultants and contractors accountable for contract compliance. We recently reinstated
our quarterly report to communicate the budget and schedule status of ongoing
projects, the latest of which was delivered to the Senate and House Appropriations
Committees in January and was well received by staff.
CAPITAL PROJECTS BUDGET

Our fiscal year 2007 budget is comprised of two major components: $232 million
for capital projects and $356.3 million for our annual operating budget.
The capital projects budget request consists of $193.4 million for capital projects,
$22.7 million for studies, designs, and condition assessments, and $15.9 million for
minor construction. This budget was developed by prioritizing our project requirements; including those requested by our customers. Using this set of criteria, we
were able to cut our initial list of 36 projects totaling more than $188 million to
19 projects worth $143.7 million. However, the projects that did not make this current list have not gone away, nor has the need to fund them within reasonable timeframes. They will have to be reprioritized for another fiscal year where they will
again compete with other significant, additional projects for available funding.
The capital projects budget is grouped into the categories listed below (also shown
in Attachment A). Note that these include a number of U.S Senate projects that
have been designed to be completed in phases that we hope to continue next year.
They include public restroom upgrades, modular furniture replacement, emergency
generator installation, and fire alarm system upgrades.
Deferred Maintenance$30.4 million
Maintenance or repair work on existing facilities and infrastructure that is past
due and should not be deferred. This work will return a component or system to
an acceptable condition. It will prevent physical depreciation or loss in the value of
a building (this does not include preventative or routine maintenance).
Projects include:
$19.43 millionDirksen Senate Office Building; attic infrastructure improvements;
$4 millionRayburn House Office Building; 480v Switchgear and Transformer
Replacement;
$2.89 millionThomas Jefferson Building; air handling unit replacement; and
$2.56 millionThomas Jefferson and James Madison Buildings; elevator modernization projects.
Capital Renewal$24.3 million
Correct unacceptable conditions caused by aged building components that will exceed their useful life within the next 10 years. If deferred for an inordinate amount
of time, physical conditions may deteriorate and become a deferred maintenance
issue. Capital renewal may be performed by overhaul, reconstruction, or replacement of constituent parts damaged or deteriorated to the point where they cannot
be maintained.
Projects include:
$15.95 millionHart Senate Office Building; fire alarm system replacement;
and
$8.34 millionLongworth House Office Building; kitchen exhaust system upgrade.
Capital Improvement$41.1 million
Work done to a building that improves, enhances, or updates a building such as
an addition, expansion, alteration, or replacement including work done to bring a
building into compliance with current codes.
Projects include:
$6.1 millionRussell Senate Office Building; emergency lighting and power upgrade;
$4.96 millionRayburn House Office Building; emergency lighting upgrade;

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$3 millionRayburn House Office Building; Phase I public restrooms upgrade;
$3.5 millionU.S. Capitol; security improvements in the House Chamber; and
$4.37 millionThomas Jefferson Building; sprinkler system replacement.
Capital Construction$63.7 million
Construction of a new building, facility, or other infrastructure where none previously existed.
Projects include:
$54.2 millionLibrary of Congress Logistics Warehouse, Fort Meade;
$5.35 millionAlternate Computer Facility; vehicle storage facility; and
$4.1 millionU.S. Capitol Police; kiosks.
Other Projects$12.3 million
Projects necessary to sustain and provide for Congressional and Legislative
Branch Agency mission requirements that do not meet CIP criteria (construction
projects greater than $250,000).
Projects include:
$5 millionAlternate Computer Facility; land purchase; and
$2.1 millionEnergy Survey of Congressional Buildings.
Study, Design, and Condition Assessments$22.7 million
Activities necessary to plan for future projects.
Projects include:
$1 millionJames Madison Building; Facility Condition Assessment;
$3 millionFDA; fit out design study;
$750,000Longworth House Office Building; fire alarm system upgrade;
$700,000U.S. Capitol; electrical distribution system replacement design; and
$300,000Cannon House Office Building; egress improvements study.
Minor Construction$15.9 million
Minor construction funding for each jurisdiction that provides the flexibility for
meeting unplanned project requirements generated by Committees, Members, staffs,
and other AOC clients.
Capitol Visitor Center$21.6 million
The fiscal year 2007 budget request includes $20.6 million for CVC cost-to-complete. Also included is $1 million for start-up and operational costs associated with
opening the CVC, including one-time costs such as furniture, equipment, computers
and other necessary items. GAOs ongoing analysis recommends adding $5 million
to this amount to accommodate risk for further time extension and contingency for
a total of $25.6 million for project cost-to-complete.
While recognizing that the cumulative effect of the projects listed above represent
a significant increase over fiscal year 2006 levels, these projects were considered our
highest priorities. Although hard decisions were made to reduce the amount of our
overall request, further cuts will likely be necessary to accommodate Federal budget
limitations. Once again, this means that the projects that are eliminated will be deferred to successive years where they will again compete with other additional, significant projects for available funding.
ANNUAL OPERATING BUDGET

Our fiscal year 2007 annual operating budget request of $356.3 million reflects
the addition of significant mandatory price level increases as well as new programs.
The key drivers of this increase include:
Forty percent growth in utility costs over fiscal year 2006 enacted levels due
to the recent deregulation of electric power and the increased cost of natural
fuels following the devastation in the Gulf Coast caused by Hurricane Katrina
last summer.
Mandatory payroll increases and the addition of 91 FTEs to support daily operations and maintenance of the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC).
One-time CVC operations costs to purchase furniture, equipment, computers,
and other necessary items.
Re-establishing Information Technology base resources and upgrading systems.
Leases and/or maintenance and operations of additional facilities.
Utilities
With regard to utilities, in an effort to offset cost increases, we have initiated a
number of energy conservation measures. The first was to develop two Energy Savings Performance Contracts to upgrade equipment and save energy, at no additional
cost to the government. Contractors are paid from proven energy savings. Other ef-

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forts involve developing a five-year plan to conduct energy audit surveys of all buildings on the Capitol campus, and publishing a brochure about saving energy
throughout the Capitol complex to be distributed to Hill staff.
In addition, the Capitol Power Plant staff has successfully completed a number
of new maintenance projects to improve the performance, safety, and reliability of
the boiler house and chilled water plants. As part of the West Refrigeration Plant
Expansion Project, three new chillers became operable in November 2005. With the
addition of this new equipment, we will experience greater efficiencies at the Plant
and remove old mechanically and environmentally outdated machines.
CVC Day-to-Day Operations
In anticipation of the start-up and operational costs associated with the Capitol
Visitor Center, our annual operating budget request includes funds to cover day-today operational and maintenance requirements as well as anticipated one-time costs
such as furniture and equipment, computers, and other necessary items. Until such
time as the Congress decides the issue of reporting relationships and governance of
the CVC, we have included these costs in the AOCs budget, including $10.6 million
for payroll costs associated with the hiring of an additional 91 FTEs.
Information Technology
Another factor driving our operating budget request for fiscal year 2007 is an increase in investment in information technology. In our fiscal year 2006 budget request, we had cut the base resources in an attempt to constrain growth. Our intention was to fund information technology program shortfalls with lapses in payroll
or other general and administrative areas, but that strategy has not worked well
in the current fiscal environment due to rising costs of utilities and other expenses.
Therefore, we are requesting $25.7 million to re-establish these base resources and
to protect our IT systems by installing the latest technology security programs as
required, preparing for future technological needs, and improving internal operations by replacing our project information system and upgrading the interface of
our inventory control system to our financial system.
The February 2006 GAO Report notes that the agency has yet to establish and
implement key information security practices, such as completing risk assessments
on all of its major applications, documenting the identified risks in system security
plans, and developing and implementing appropriate security controls to mitigate
the risksincluding developing contingency plans for all systems and applications.
Until AOC completes and implements plans for improvement that are consistent
with all our recommendations, it will be challenged in its ability to effectively use
IT to optimize mission performance. Updating our IT systems is a crucial part of
achieving these tasks as outlined by GAO.
SENATE OFFICE BUILDING IMPROVEMENTS

A number of projects that we have requested funding for in next years budget
for the Senate Office Buildings focuses on upgrading and replacing equipment that
has exceeded its useful life expectancy or updating the historic buildings to meet
modern requirements. For example, we are requesting $19.4 million to replace the
air handling units in the Dirksen Building to improve building ventilation and to
ensure the systems reliability since the existing equipment is more than 40 years
old and inefficient. We have also requested $6 million to upgrade emergency lighting
in the Russell Building; $15 million to upgrade the fire alarm system in the Hart
Building; and $5.8 million to install an emergency generator in the Russell Building
to provide electrical power in an emergency.
CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER BUDGET

While most of our projects are worked on behind the scenes, underneath the East
Front of the U.S. Capitol work is proceeding on the largest and most complex project
in the history of the Capitolthe Capitol Visitor Center. Our fiscal year 2007 budget request would fund CVC operations, administration, facility maintenance, and
construction cost-to-complete. The requested funding also would support the required activities and programs for transitional and start-up costs, exhibits, gift
shops, telecommunications, and information technology infrastructure support. The
Capitol Preservation Commission (CPC) supports the AOCs request for operational
funding as an interim measure until it is determined how, and by whom, the CVC
will be operated.
At our February hearing before this Subcommittee, we testified that we are now
anticipating the CVC to be completed, including commissioning of life-safety systems, in March 2007, and available for a formal opening in April 2007. We reported
the two key issues prompting that time extension are the delays in the delivery and

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installation of interior stone due to a court injunction and a longer-than-expected
duration for the fire and life-safety acceptance testing process.
The project schedule extension has impacted the overall project cost-to-complete.
Last fall, we concurred with GAOs assessment that potential risks do exist and that
additional funds would be necessary should these risks turn into reality; most notably if completion of the CVC occurred after December 2006, or if significant additional change orders were required. After meetings held the past several months
with GAO and our construction manager, Gilbane, we anticipated that the delay,
along with additional change orders and the potential for future project risks, could
increase the projects cost-to-complete by approximately $20.6 million. This is the
amount we requested in the fiscal year 2007 budget. GAOs ongoing review however,
has resulted in a revised estimate of the cost-to-complete which adds approximately
$5 million to this amount for risk, further time extension, and contingency. Accordingly, Mr. Chairman, if you concur, we will work with you to effect this adjustment
in order to ensure that there are adequate contingencies as we work to complete
the CVC.
Further information on the status of the project and a construction update is provided in my testimony specifically addressing the Capitol Visitor Center which will
be discussed following this portion of the hearing (attached).
ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Over the past 10 years, the AOC has been undergoing a transformation into a
more strategic organization by implementing new policies and procedures, while at
the same time continuing to meet our responsibilities as good stewards. I appreciate
the efforts of AOC employees in balancing their heavy workloads with implementing
these important changes to our organization.
At this time, I would like to highlight some of the major AOC accomplishments
of the past year. As GAO has noted in its February 2006 report, we have made significant progress in our transformation efforts, we continue to make progress, but
the transformation is a long-term effort.
Strategic Plan
A key component in this effort has been the implementation of our Strategic Plan
in 2003. The Plan has provided us with a blueprint for change by defining our mission, vision, and core values and created a structure of goals, and objectives through
which we focus our efforts. As we begin the third year of this five-year plan, it continues to evolve. As part of our Strategic Performance Initiative, we are developing
and implementing meaningful performance measures that will be linked to our daily
activities and resource requirements. In the spirit of the Government Performance
and Results Act, we have developed an AOC dashboard document which includes
several high-level indicators to track performance for each of our strategic goals as
well as a target goal for each indicator. Our senior leadership team meets monthly
to monitor these indicators and goals to ensure that we meet the milestones we
have set in our Performance Plan.
Work Orders
In fiscal year 2005, we completed nearly 34,200 work orders in the Senate Office
Buildings. To date, we have completed more than 19,000 work orders in fiscal year
2006. These are tasks that are requested of the AOC rather than programmed by
our Agency and the work ranges from changing light bulbs, to fixing plumbing, to
reconfiguring office space and painting. A number of other projects were completed
during the past fiscal year. For example, we replaced the Rotunda balcony doors and
installed high voltage switch gear in the Russell Office Building; we installed new
modular walls and furniture in 10 Hart Building offices, and installed new wall
sconces in the Dirksen Building. In addition, we completed the restoration of three
Committee rooms in the Dirksen Building and one Committee room in the Russell
Building as well as upgraded the audio and visual systems in these four rooms.
Special Events
The U.S. Capitol also was the site of a number of high-profile events including
the Presidential Inaugural ceremony, which the AOC supported by building the
platform, contracting for the audio system, installing the security fencing and crowd
control features, as well as removing the snow that fell the night before the event.
In October, we prepared the Capitol Building for another historic occasion, the lying
in honor of Ms. Rosa Parks.

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National Garden
This fall, we look forward to the grand opening of the National Garden. This
project is solely funded by private donations raised by the National Fund for the
U.S. Botanic Garden. This not-for-profit corporation raised the private funds pursuant to Public Law 102229. It the first public-private partnership project for the
AOC. Last summer, we authorized the third option to be awarded under this contract; the construction of the First Ladies Water Garden. Construction on the National Garden began in spring 2004 on the base bid which consisted of the Rose Garden, Butterfly Garden, Lawn Terrace, and the Hornbeam Court. Option one, the
landscaped garden path that meanders through the site, and option two, the Regional (Mid-Atlantic) Garden were subsequently awarded. Construction is scheduled
to be completed next month and then landscaping and planting will occur on the
site through the spring and summer. A public opening is scheduled for October.
Decreased Injury and Illness Rate
For the fifth year in a row, the AOCs Injury and Illness rate decreased. We
dropped to 5.65 cases per 100 employees in fiscal year 2005, from a high of 17.9
cases per 100 employees in fiscal year 2000. We posted a four percent reduction in
our rate while, at the same time, we faced the challenges of post-election office
moves and an Inauguration, in addition to meeting our daily work demands. While
I am proud of these accomplishments, I will not be satisfied until we achieve our
ultimate goal of a workplace free of injury and illness. To make that goal a reality,
we continue to educate and train our workforce and assure that our employees have
the requisite equipment they need to do their jobs safely. We also took action and
reduced injury and illness rates on the CVC construction site. The rate declined
from 9.1 in 2003 and 12.2 in 2004, to 5.9 for the first 10 months of 2005below
the 2003 industry average of 6.1.
Financial Statements
We have also made great strides in generating more reliable annual financial
statements. In 2005, we published our first accountability report and earned an unqualified opinion for the second consecutive year on the AOC balance sheet. Our Office of the Chief Financial Officer developed processes and procedures in anticipation of the first full audit of the full set of financial statements for fiscal year 2005.
Employee Feedback Program and Action Plans
Last year, as part of our strategic planning efforts, we developed a comprehensive
employee feedback program. As part of that initiative, I invited AOC employees to
participate in focus groups where they identified problems and suggested ways to
help us solve them in order to improve the organization. Over the past year, we created a series of action plans that addressed the issues raised. Specifically, we:
Improved internal communication by sharing best practices in customer service
AOC-wide.
Are establishing basic standards for written communication to make it easier
for all employees to read and understand Agency documents. Published a Correspondence Manual and Style Guide for all written documents.
Are requiring regular staff meetings and providing training on how to conduct
effective staff meetings.
Have established AOC-wide Town Hall Meetings.
Are including specific training to enhance communications skills in our Leadership Development Program (mandatory for all supervisors).
Explained and communicated the Agency mission in an easy to retain slogan:
Serving Congress with a Commitment to Excellence.
Improved transparency by publishing and explaining approved organization
charts and promoting consistency and fairness in workforce classification.
Issued AOC policies on Employee Feedback, Performance Evaluation, and
Awards and improved general policy knowledge by instituting easy to read onepage summaries explaining these policies.
Improved Internal Service Providers customer orientation, making them more
accessible.
Performance Metrics
Finally, we continue to regularly collect, track, and manage operational performance metrics that are linked to our Strategic Plan goals through a variety of tools
and processes. These tools not only help improve communication among AOC managers and staff, but have also led to process improvements in several areas. In addition, it has helped to improve our communication and outreach to Congressional
leadership and our oversight committees regarding our performance. We continue

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to work with Congress and GAO to further identify areas for improvement while
balancing our long-term goals and our day-to-day responsibilities.
I want to thank the Committee for its support without which we could not have
undertaken these efforts and completed many critical projects, continued to provide
exemplary services, and assured continuity of operations at the Capitol, in the Senate Office Buildings, and throughout the Capitol complex.
CONCLUSION

The AOC is dedicated to serving Congress with a commitment to excellence.

In its February 2006 report to Congress, the GAO stated that the AOC has been
working for several years to transform itself into a more strategic and accountable
organization and to improve worker safety. This transformation is a long-term effort
that involves a fundamental change in AOCs culture. It also noted that AOC operates in a challenging environment: the agency must preserve and modernize these
high-profile, historic buildings while meeting the needs of Congressincluding its
leadership, committees, individual members, and staffsand the visiting public.
Since the implementation of our Strategic Plan, GAO writes that:
To strengthen human capital management, AOC had, among other things,
linked its employee evaluation system to mission-critical goals, established
monthly management meetings to share and assess data from employee relations offices, and identified a number of ways to collect, report, and analyze
workforce data.
To improve worker safety, AOC has made progress in developing safety policies, implementing a system to track investigations of incidents and follow up,
completing a job hazard analysis process to report hazards, and establishing a
safety-training curriculum that fully supports the goals of the safety policies.
To further improve financial management, AOC is developing an agencywide
internal control framework and a cost accounting system, which are essential
to improving accountability across all AOC operations.
To further improve communication with employees, AOC has implemented a
variety of communication methods to convey information to employees, including a weekly newsletter on project updates, policy announcements, management
and communication tips, and other agencywide messages.
The AOC recycling program has undergone significant expansion over the past
five years, while at the same time becoming more efficient. The program has
also been expanded by increasing the number of locations at which recycling is
taking place.
AOC has also taken important initial steps to address the management and
structure needed to establish a sound IT investment management process, such
as assigning roles, responsibilities, and the authority needed to manage its IT
investment portfolio.
To improve project management, AOC created a clearly defined, well-documented, and transparent process for evaluating and prioritizing projects.
Mr. Chairman, my team and I are committed to fulfilling our responsibilities over
the long-term, although that it means, at times, we have to make tough choices with
regard to how we prioritize our projects or how we manage our clients expectations.
Our request for funds for fiscal year 2007 is in direct response to our responsibility
as good stewards to maintain and preserve the facilities and national treasures
under our care. In addition, we continue to strive to achieve a high level of safety,
security, preservation, and cleanliness expected across the Capitol complex.
I am very proud of the dedicated professionals who make up the AOC team and
I am privileged to lead this remarkable organization. I greatly appreciate the Committees support in helping us achieve our goals.

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FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET INCREASE

Senator ALLARD. If its all right, Senator Durbin, Im going to run

the time clock on this, Ill take 5 minutes and then you can have
5 minutes and Ill do my best to abide by that.
Mr. Hantman, I guess Ive had a couple of shocks this morning.
The first one was somewhat expected, thats the huge increase in
your budget request. How do you justify an increase of this magnitude?
Mr. HANTMAN. Mr. Chairman, as I indicated in my statement, I
really didnt prepare this budget in a vacuum. I recognized the difficult financial conditions that the entire Government has. When I
quoted the direction that I received from this subcommittee several
years ago, to take a look at the condition assessments, I really had
to evaluate what my role was as steward of these buildings and
these treasures here on Capitol Hill. What we did is we went
through a prioritization process which originally included something like 36 projects or so. We prioritized them in accordance with
the methodology that I included in my testimony here. The methodology is an overall planning process that takes into account fire and
life safety codes, preservation of historic and legacy elements, impact on our mission, including client urgency, economics, and physical security. All of these issues were evaluated. We then looked
into the issue of rating these projects, whether the condition of
these projects and the areas that they were meant to serve adequate, substandard or deficient. We then further rated them as
to urgency and accomplishing them in terms of immediate, high,

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medium, et cetera. In coming up with the list of 19 projects that
survived that list of 36, Mr. Chairman, we eliminated some $43
million worth of projects. What we wanted to do was actually discuss the criteria, the methodology we went through to select these
projects.
I recognize that we have to cut back on the numbers that we
have over here. But in the spirit of the report that this subcommittee directed us to do years ago, to do the assessments; I
thought it was important to bring forward to the subcommittee, the
nature, the magnitude of the issues that we have building up here
on Capitol Hill.
The more projects we put off, the more projects we have to plan
for in future budgets. And there are more projects that keep coming up in terms of the age of the infrastructure and the buildings
we have here.
So I dont presume, Mr. Chairman, to ask more than other Federal agencies. I dont presume to go over whatever budget cap is
realistic in this. I just wanted to make the point that basically, if
were going to be good stewards, and fulfill, in fact, the mission
that this subcommittee gave us years ago, that we bring to the attention of the Congress what needs to be done and work together
to find out how best to do this, how to spread it out over the years,
and make sure that these facilities are good for future generations
and that the fire and life safety standards are in fact met.
UTILITY TUNNEL CONDITIONS

Senator ALLARD. I appreciate you laying this all out for us. Were
just going to have to do some tough priority setting as we move forward in this subcommittee.
The other shock I had was the condition of the utility tunnels.
I have some pictures here that were taken, apparently the inside
of the tunnel in some areas, and Im shocked at the amount of
crumbling of the structure and the rusting thats going on in some
of the old pipes. It seems to me we really have to get after this.
Why isnt this your highest priority? And can you give us a better
idea of what we may be looking at, are we tearing up streets? Im
concerned about safety considerations, when we have cement walls
that are crumbling, asbestos is okay, as long as its not in a state
where its moving, and its moving. Walls are crumbling. Im worried about the potential of risk to the workers and everyone that
happen to use that tunnel. I wish youd comment on that please.
Mr. HANTMAN. Thank you Mr. Chairman. Clearly that is an issue
and theres no doubt that more work is necessary within the tunnels. When we first started looking at this, and this was well before
the citation back in the year 2000. We recognized that there were
two issues that we needed to deal with. One of them was the immediate issue of the condition of the tunnel and the workmen who go
down there on a daily basis to maintain the condition. We recognized that it was a long-term solution, that we could not rip up all
the streets around the Capitol complex, we have some 12,000 lineal
feet of tunnel here. And, in fact, as I indicated before 600 feet of
that was ripped up on Constitution Avenue as the first priority
that was identified in this project because of not only the needs in
the tunnel itself, but also because of the traffic that goes on top of

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that tunnel. Every time we look at the major issues, we recognize
that theres an awful lot of inconvenience that will occur to the
Congress, to the Capitol, to our community as we rip up streets.
Part of the $1.8 million we have in the reprogramming will be
going toward a design for the next section which was almost in as
bad shape as the section under Constitution Avenue, in front of the
Senate Office buildings. This is on Second Street, to the south of
the Madison Library of Congress office building. Were doing a
study on it. We fully expect that were going to have disruptions,
major concerns from the community, from ourselves. We dont control the streets under which our steam lines run over there. And
that would be our next focus as identified in the original report.
But while we recognize that the major ripping up of streets where
weve got so many going on right now, as you know, East Capitol
Street, we have this new steam tunnel going in for the Capitol Visitor Center, on South Capitol Street, we ripped it up for other
steam and infrastructure utility lines. Were nearing the completion of that, were still doing it on E Street in front of the Power
Plant. How much construction fatigue can the Congress take? How
much disruption can the community take at one time? Thats what
we have to work out with respect to the major projects. And we
fully expect as we get through our studies on this next section of
the R tunnel, as its called, past the Madison Building, will cost
us millions of dollars and well have to be talking to the subcommittee about how that gets funded.
But the immediate priority was the Constitution Avenue tunnel,
while these things were being phased over multiple years. The plan
was never to finish all of this work by the year 2002. Past budget
requests will indicate that we showed tens of millions of dollars in
out-years to solve all of these problems. Our immediate problem
was to make it as safe as we could for the people who work there
on a day-to-day basis.
So as we went through the years, eachwe installed a leaky
cable communication system in the tunnels, through the main tunnel system as I indicated before. By this summer, we should have
the small stub tunnels, leading from those main communication cables to each building, taken care of as well. We implemented emergency shoring and repairs to the tunnels and weve done so every
year since the year 2000 when this came about.
So people have been going into those tunnels, looking out for
spalls, taking care of those spalls, so that it is less dangerous for
the people who go in there. Weve also initiated three person work
teams where one person would stay outside of the manhole and two
people using their radio communications, would go inside the manhole and they would be able to talk about things. I met with the
tunnel crew last week Mr. Chairman, listened to all of the issues
that they had, to the concerns that they had, and the highest priorities they saw which basically amounted to the Y tunnel, which
is where a lot of our focus and studies are going into at this point
as well.
So we have been trying to move forward on the day-to-day life
safety while were planning the long term projects which require
greater funding and have a greater impact on the community.

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Senator ALLARD. Let me call on my colleague, Senator Durbin.
I know he is shocked as I am at the condition of those tunnels and
I think hes got some questions he wants to ask in that regard.
OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE COMPLAINT

Senator DURBIN. Thank you very much. Mr. Hantman, this is

unprecedented is it not, that the Office of Compliance would file a
complaint against the Architects Office?
Mr. HANTMAN. Thats my understanding, sir.
Senator DURBIN. And its been noted now for 6 years or more
that there were problems, hazards and dangers to employees in
these tunnels, is that not true?
Mr. HANTMAN. That is true, sir.
Senator DURBIN. I understand budgets because Ive served on the
Appropriations Committee on the House and Senate, and been on
this subcommittee for some time. But I cannot believe that if you
felt that this was a life threatening situation and came to Congress
that we wouldnt have responded. Did you feel this was a life
threatening situation?
Mr. HANTMAN. We felt that there was certainly conditions down
there that needed to be ameliorated so that it would not be a life
safety situation.
Senator DURBIN. I think you said yes, that you felt it was a life
threatening situation.
Mr. HANTMAN. Certainly with spalling concrete coming off, that
could be certainly a life safety situation, yes.
Senator DURBIN. And I have to ask you why you didnt make this
plea to Congress, saying the lives of workman are at stake here.
When I look at this, its a lengthy survey done by the Office of
Compliance, the conclusions at one part say, neither the conditions, nor the protective measures for either asbestos or heat stress
have improved for tunnel shop employees between the OOC report
of August 24, 1999 and the inspection made for this report. And
they have cited in here as Im sure youve read ample evidence that
the workers whether they knew it or not, were exposed to asbestos
hazard during 5 or 6 years while they were working in these conditions. Were you aware of that exposure?
Mr. HANTMAN. We have worked inwe have five tunnels sir.
One of them is the V tunnel for instance. We completed abating
the asbestos in that tunnel last year. We have money in the project
loop right now, in procurement for the B tunnel to abate the
we areone of the comments that the chairman made before in
terms of encapsulating asbestos, we recognize that we have asbestos in all of our buildings and all of our tunnels around the campus. As long as its encapsulated and safe we will be replacing that
as we can, as we go down the road with various projects.
Most of these tunnels have had encapsulated work accomplished.
The B tunnel, for instance, had new jacketing put on it. That
jacketing is now wearing out. We have a $200,000 project to abate
the work in that tunnel.

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EMPLOYEE SAFETY IN THE TUNNELS

Senator DURBIN. Mr. Hantman, did you warn the workers that
they were going to expose themselves to inhalation of asbestos if
they worked in the tunnels that were not protected?
Mr. HANTMAN. The workers were aware of these asbestos issues.
We worked to repair problems when they saw an asbestos issue, or
we had the construction management division go in to inspect, we
would go in and repair those particular sections and make sure
that they were encapsulated.
Senator DURBIN. Did the workers wear any protective breathing
device working around this asbestos?
Mr. HANTMAN. They are now, sir.
Senator DURBIN. When did that start?
Mr. HANTMAN. This is just starting.
Senator DURBIN. Why did we wait so long to protect these workers?
Mr. HANTMAN. We were working in those tunnels, we had constant inspections going on in those tunnels. We recognized that we
needed to do full tunnel work as we did on Constitution Avenue to
make sure thatand as we did on the V tunnel that we can take
care of it as a total project while we were encapsulating segments
as we went along.
Senator DURBIN. Mr. Hantman, I would have to tell you that perhaps I have a heightened interest in this with the debate we just
went through on the asbestos issue. And having met scores of widows and widowers of people sufferingwho suffered from mesothelioma and asbestosis. Theres not a single one of us in this room
who knows for sure that we havent been exposed to asbestos that
will kill us. In this circumstance, we knew that there was asbestos,
we knew that it was a hazard to workers, and literally waited
years before we provided safety devices for these workers to protect
them. How could we possibly explain that to the workers or their
families?
Mr. HANTMAN. We had ongoing inspections but clearly they were
not adequate. Senator Durbin.
Senator DURBIN. Well thats cold comfort. I appreciate your admission, but I think it tells that we have done a great disservice
to these workers and their families. And I hope of all the priorities
which we face on Capitol Hill, that the first priority will be the
safety of the men and women who work here and visit here. And
if that is the case, I want to say to you point blank. If you do not
come forward with requests for life safety measures and protective
devices to protect these workers then youre not doing your duty.
You need to call on us, and if we fail then its on our shoulders
but knowing this for 5 or 6 years, and not responding to it, and exposing workers to these potential life threatening situations thats
entirely unacceptable. And to think that it would happen on Capitol Hill, the seat of our Government, the symbol of who we are as
a people, makes it even worse. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALLARD. Well Id like to agree with Senator Durbin on
his comments. I do think that we have to get moving quickly on
this, we need to get it taken care of. I understand your concerns
about disrupting traffic, part of its on Constitution Avenue. But I

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think that we need to get a plan in place quickly as to how we can
deal with this, and somehow or other find the resources to begin
to get this situation rectified as much as possible, and get the city
to understand that this is a serious problem and it needs to be
dealt with. I know its going to create some travel inconveniences,
but I just think it has to be done.
Senator DURBIN. Mr. Chairman if I might add to that. Mr.
Hantman said how much construction fatigue can Congress take,
he went onto talk about how much disruption of traffic can the
community take. Well Im prepared to face both of those challenges
but Im not prepared to face the families of these workers and tell
them we didnt do everything humanly possible to protect them in
the workplace.
TUNNEL REPAIR PLANS

Mr. HANTMAN. We have requested $1.75 million in this budget

to do further studies and work on that, in addition to the $1.8 million that weve recently reprogrammed. We will certainly get back
to you in terms of what those studies are showing and the priorities in terms of those dollars.
Senator ALLARD. I dont know what kind of time line you were
thinking about, but we need to expedite this. I hope that you can
come back with an expedited plan. Give us a better idea of what
this total thing is going to cost, so we can deal with it, and begin
to plan for it. Weve got a lot of things that are on that list, but
in my view this needs to be toward the top of the list. We need to
somehow begin to address it right away. You now have the feeling
of this subcommittee that we think this is important, and we need
to expedite it. I hope that you would look at the budget request
that youve made and see what we can do now to begin to address
these problems. I agree with Senator Durbin, the traffic and inconvenience to Members of Congress and our staff, thats a minor
issue relative to the seriousness of what we have here. We need to
deal with it.
TRACKING OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE CITATIONS

Are you keeping a list of possible problems that are erupting so

that we dont get to this problem in some future time? Where the
Office of Compliance has pointed out a problem or potential problem, is it being catalogued so that we can see what might be coming down the pike so that we can begin to meet these challenges
as they face the committee?
Mr. AYERS. Yes, Mr. Chairman, we do meet regularly with the
Office of Compliance and they have over the years, since 1999,
issued a variety of citations. We work to abate those and request
funding as necessary to abate those. We meet with them on a regular basis to update them on the status of the abatement of those
citations.
CAPITAL PROJECTS AND THE LIBRARY LOGISTICS WAREHOUSE
PRIORITIZATION

Senator ALLARD. Let me move onto capital projects. Your budget

includes 19 major capital projects, totaling about $143.7 million.

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Could you describe the process, referred to as the line item construction program, you went through to come with this list of
projects?
The projects are ranked based on their urgency and the type of
project, now how is a library storage facility ranked number nine
on this list?
Mr. HANTMAN. As I indicated Mr. Chairman, when we originally
started looking at projects, and the importance and the ranking on
the list, we had some 36 projects there. The library logistics warehouse was number 35 on that list, because we ranked it as a high
need, but not an immediate need. What happens when you get to
all of the fire and life safety, the preservation, the economics, the
physical security issues and you rank that, and you look at the current condition of various projects, youll note thats one of the few
projects on our request which is a new project as opposed to something that needs to be repaired and maintained. Originally that
was not ranked high on the list, it was number 35 as opposed to
where it is right now, in number 9. The Librarian expressed very
strong need and concern that it was an immediate priority. We
have not done facility condition assessments for the Library as of
yet. We hope to get that funding in here so we can actually do the
type of analysis we talked about before. So in terms of the final
overview, once you go through all the fire and life safety, the physical security, the deficiencies, and things like that, the urgency of
the project is the element that is the last overlay on that. So our
priority was originally high, the Librarian indicated that was an
immediate project, very important. And so it was on that basis
that it was raised toits the lowest of the immediate projects on
our list which is number nine. We have eight immediate above
it, all the rest below it are high.
If it had not been ranked as immediate at the Librarians request it would have been number 35 in the project list and would
not have been requested.
DIRKSEN INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

Senator ALLARD. The Dirksen infrastructure improvements total

somewhere about $19.4 million, can you describe these improvements and tell us where the project can be broken down into
phases so as to lessen the price tag in fiscal year 2007.
Mr. HANTMAN. This again Mr. Chairman, is an important
project. Basically what were looking at over here, is we think that
this project could be phased in multiple years. As far as the Dirksen project is concerned, the current situation is that its calling for
the replacement of air handling units in the Dirksen Office Building. Theyre an integrated piece of equipment, they consist of fans,
heating units, coils, et cetera, and we currently have 21 air handling units serving the building right now. There are 12 of them
on the seventh floor of the Dirksen Senate Office Building that
have to be replaced. These are air handlers that are over 40 years
old. Theyve exceeded their useful life, and theyre very inefficient.
So this project would replace those 12 air handler units with new
units that have replaceable filters, steam preheat coils, clean steam
humidifiers, variable frequency drive motors, direct digital control
systems. The work would include reconnecting the main units, et

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cetera. If not funded, the building ventilation will gradually worsen
and the units will fail in the near future. Just when in the near
future, we wouldnt know exactly but in terms of good process and
procedure, this could happen.
Weve taken a look at this project Mr. Chairman, and we think
it could be phased by stack especially. Specifically on the north
stack, theres a center stack, and a south stack in the Dirksen
Building. Phasing would require increased project coordination,
some increased administrative costs, and contractor overhead,
things like this. But we think it could be phased into three pieces.
Senator ALLARD. Do you have an idea about how that would affect the cost of the project?
Mr. HANTMAN. Yes, in thewe think that for this first year, we
could do the south wing for three air handling units for $6.5 million, next year we could do the center wing for $8.4 million, and
the north wing in the following year for some $6 million. This
would add about a $1.5 million in additional costs to the project,
but it could be spread out over 3 years.
CONSTRUCTION OVERHEAD COSTS

Senator ALLARD. Thank you. The Architect of the Capitols construction overhead costs include more than 10 percent for contract
administration and construction management. Other agencies such
as the Corps of Engineers and the naval facilities engineering command include costs in the range of 6 to 8 percent. What do AOCs
overhead costs support and why are your overhead costs higher
than these other ones mentioned?
Mr. HANTMAN. We can certainly respond to the record for that
if we could Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. If you would please.
[The information follows:]
The AOCs overhead costs consists of the following:
Construction Contingency Cost.This is added to the total Estimated Construction Contract Cost (ECCC) to allow for change orders. The percentage typically
ranges between 5 percent to 10 percent for new construction and 10 percent to 15
percent for renovation work. The higher contingency percentage for renovation work
is due to the greater likelihood that during renovation unknown or unforeseen conditions may be encountered.
Implementation Cost.These are administrative costs added to the Estimated
Construction Project Cost (the accumulated ECCC plus Contingency) to support the
AOCs costs during project execution. These include: (1) Construction Administration, (2.5 percent)this is usually a contract with the A/E firm performing the design, or the A/E firm who performed the design, to account for shop drawing submittal reviews, answering Requests for Information (RFIs), and any additional technical services related to interpretation of the drawings and specifications during
construction, and the percentage applied is an industry-accepted standard; (2) AOC
Construction Management, (8 percent)this amount is set aside to pay for Term
AOC employees hired as Construction Managers, who are the COTRs during construction, and Construction Inspectors, who provide daily quality assurance during
construction execution; (3) Government Testing, Inspection and Quality Control, (2.5
percent)this amount is provided to allow for independent testing, inspections services, or quality control services that may be required. Such instances include specialized testing or field verification that specified design parameters have been met,
and independent validation of information necessary to resolve contractor disputes.
Project Management Cost.This amount provides for professional associate (contract) or temporary in-house project management staff when execution of a specific
project or group of projects cannot be met with internal resources. At the present
time, temporary project management staff are funded by the LOC Fort Meade
projects to provide for overall program execution at that location. Previously, this

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allocation was used to execute portions of the Emergency Response Fund projects
because at that time there was an inadequate dedicated project management staff
to support that program. This percentagecurrently set at 5 percentwas inadvertently applied to some of the fiscal year 2007 project requests. Specific estimating
guidance has since been issued to clarify that it is to be applied only under the circumstances noted above.
The AOC has not analyzed other agency overhead cost structures. The AOC is undertaking a series of processes to determine how its overhead costs are spent, and
over time will be in a much better position to support its actual cost requirements
based on financial history matched to project performance. In addition, the Government Accountability Office has offered to provide the AOC with technical advice in
this specific area.
WEST REFRIGERATION PLANT PROJECT

Senator ALLARD. On the west refrigeration plant, this $100 million project is behind schedule by 5 or 6 months, and over budget.
What is the current schedule for completion?
Mr. HANTMAN. The current schedule is by July of this year, we
should have the units up and running, with a combination of controls, as well as manual controls so that we could be producing the
chilled water that we need throughout the campus. By the end of
the year all those controls should be in place, so that the manual
operation would no longer be needed.
Senator ALLARD. Can you assure us that no additional funds are
going to be needed?
Mr. HANTMAN. We are reprogramming dollars in this years
budget as you know Mr. Chairman, to the tune of about $4.7 million. The main reason that these funds were needed is that there
were two unforeseen conditions at the Power Plant. One of them
was the extent of the contaminated soil under the existing coal
pile. We needed to remediate that. Another was a gas main that
was on Virginia Avenue in the way of the relocated sewer line that
we had to take care of. With those two projects, that basically took
the full reprogramming value and we would have been pretty much
on budget, without having to reprogram, without those two elements.
So, yes, were expecting that this reprogramming should be able
to get us to home base.
WEST REFRIGERATION PLANT PROJECT CHALLENGES

Senator ALLARD. What are the biggest challenges youve confronted with a project, and what are some lessons learned?
Mr. HANTMAN. Well, the two project elements that I mentioned
were the biggest challenges, and that is true Mr. Chairman, of any
project we do here on Capitol Hill. The documentation is just not
very good in terms of existing drawings and all. That was certainly
the case with the gas line on Virginia Avenue. It wasnt shown in
the right place, in terms of where it really was. Another challenge
that we faced on the Power Plant, was the reason that project was
initiated in the first place. This goes back to the type of issues that
we have with facility conditions throughout the campus. How do
you know somethings going to fail? Do you replace a roof before
it fails, or do you do it because its life expectancy has really been
achieved. So when we looked at the east refrigeration plant, it actually has EPA, noncompliant elements in it. We wanted to replace
it. It was over 40 years old. It wasnt performing efficiently. We

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had planned on essentially using it long enough to be able to take
down the existing west refrigeration plant units, put them online,
hook them up and have the east plant run through the winter so
that we could do that, and the full load would be on that. Unfortunately, we had two of those units fail. Their life expectancy certainly was there, we knew that was happening, and the same issue
is, when will something fail?
So we had to essentially, while the west refrigeration plant was
up and running, make those changes. So that was something that
cost us time and it cost us money, Mr. Chairman.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORTS ON POWER PLANT
STAFFING

Senator ALLARD. Now, GAO recently reported that the Architect

of the Capitol hasnt made sufficient progress in planning to staff
the modernized Power Plant efficiently and ensure plant personnel
are trained to operate it safely. According to the GAO, the plant
has about twice as many employees as are needed for efficient operation and has since at least 1996. What are your plans for rightsizing the Power Plant while ensuring equity to all employees?
Mr. HANTMAN. We have a consultantRoss is doing a detailed
functional analysis, regarding staffing reductions. We think they
are possible. We are at the process, Mr. Chairman, we dont have
the new equipment up and all the controls in place at this point
in time. So we need to take a look at training the people inon
our staff, for automation of the plant, and cross train those people
to make sure that they can do multiple jobs efficiently. We believe
this can happen, once we have the new plant online. We are concurrently working on doing training right now, so that we can essentially right size and cross train people to bring it more in line
with the ultimate staffing thats necessary. And our new director
certainly will have his eyes and ears on that and make sure that
we do it the right way.
PERFORMANCE-BASED BUDGET

Senator ALLARD. Youve been listening to some of my concerns in

the past hearings on performance-based budgets and I understand
youre taking some action to develop a performance-based budget
to measure outcomes. Id like to know how youre coming along on
that initiative?
Mr. AYERS. Sure, thank you Mr. Chairman. We do have several
strategic performance initiatives underway, and performance-based
budgeting is one of them. If I could just step back for a moment
though. All of these refer back to our strategic plan that we developed in 2003. That strategic plan is centered around four goal
areas: facilities management, project management, human capital,
and organizational excellence. And to implement that plan, its accompanied by a performance plan that includes 16 objectives, 175
specific milestones, as well as over 300 individual activities necessary to achieve those goals. In addition to simply measuring our
progress against achieving those milestones, weve developed a series of performance indicators that enable us to track the health of
the organization on an ongoing basis. We call this our dashboard.
Weve developed some 25 different performance metrics, that we re-

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view on a monthly basis, myself and Mr. Hantman, with a team
of senior managers.
To take that strategic plan to the next level, we believe requires
the implementation of a cost accounting system as well as a performance-based budgeting system, thoseboth of those processes
are underway now. We believe thats a year long effort, weve recently added staff to our cost accounting division to begin the full
implementation of that program and we look forward to presenting
to you in 2008 our first performance-based budget.
INTERNAL CONTROLS IMPLEMENTATION

Senator ALLARD. Im looking forward to that, and thank you for

your efforts. According to GAO, its critical the Architect of the
Capitol develop strong internal controls, including a reliable cost
accounting system and sound procurement practices, can you tell
us what youve done in this area, and identify the resources youve
requested in your budget to address these needs.
Mr. AYERS. Certainly Mr. Chairman, thank you. We have begun
the roll out of a comprehensive internal controls program. This has
been, in fact, in our strategic plan since 2003. The first phase of
that, as weve selected three of thewhat we feel most important
functions of our organization. Our procure to pay, or how we purchase materials, as well as our payroll and project management
systems. As part of this internal controls program, well take each
of those systems and break them down to each of their individual
components, review them to determine what specific financial and
managerial controls need to be in place to be able to achieve the
end result. Were well in process on the first three of those. Once
those are complete, well bring in another handful of our business
processes and run them through the same process. Ultimately well
have gone through all of our strategic business processes; run them
all through this program to develop a sound internal controls program. We do have two FTEs requested in our 2007 budget to enable us to continue that, and expand that internal controls as well
as the cost accounting program.
CONTRACT MANAGEMENT IMPROVEMENTS

Senator ALLARD. Your contract management has been subject to

some criticism. What are you doing to try and improve it?
Mr. AYERS. I think one of the most important initiatives weve
undertaken, is the development of a comprehensive core competency program, both for our project managers as well as for our
procurement employees. Thats a terrific program, and our employees are run through an appropriations law class, a contract management class, I think thats been our most important initiative in
that area.
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER SELECTION

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Let me ask you Mr. Hantman, about the
position of Chief Financial Officer. This seems to me like a critical
position to get filled. How are we doing on filling this position?
Mr. HANTMAN. I think were going well Mr. Chairman, we
empaneleda panel essentially last week, which includes Stephen

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Ayers, it includes the CFOs of the Government Accountability Office and the Government Printing Office. Some 53 resumes are
being reviewed right now. Clearly thats a critically important position and the process is moving along.
Senator ALLARD. Thats all the questions that the subcommittee
has. I would like to thank you for your participation.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

The subcommittee on legislative branch will stand in recess,

until Wednesday, April 5, 2006 when it will hear testimony from
the Sergeant at Arms and Capitol Police Board. Thank you.
[Whereupon at 11:15 a.m., Wednesday, March 15, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene at 10 a.m., Wednesday, April 5.]

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2007
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2006

U.S. SENATE,
APPROPRIATIONS,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 10:35 a.m., in room SD138, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Wayne Allard (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senator Allard.
SUBCOMMITTEE

OF THE

COMMITTEE

ON

U.S. SENATE
SERGEANT

AT

ARMS

AND

DOORKEEPER

STATEMENT OF WILLIAM H. PICKLE, SERGEANT AT ARMS AND DOORKEEPER

OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Senator ALLARD. The subcommittee will come to order. This

morning, we meet to take testimony on the fiscal year 2007 budget
requests for the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the Senate,
U.S. Capitol Police, and the Capitol Guide Service and Special
Services Office.
We welcome our witnesses this morning. First, we will hear from
the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the Senate, Mr. William
Pickle. Good morning, Mr. Pickle.
Mr. PICKLE. Good Morning, Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALLARD. The Sergeant at Arms budget request total is
$224 million, an increase of about $25 million or 12 percent over
the current year. The budget would fund an additional 34 employees as well as implement additional security initiatives. Funding is
also included to continue the telephone replacement project.
Following the Sergeant at Arms, we will hear from the Capitol
Police Board, currently chaired by House Sergeant at Arms Bill
Livingood. Good morning, Bill.
The Board is requesting $295 million for the Capitol Police, an
increase of $48 million or almost 20 percent over the current year.
The request includes 101 additional sworn officers and seven additional administrative employees, which would bring the department staffing to a total of 2,180 employees.
The budget includes $28 million for overtime, about $8 million
more than the police department anticipates will be needed this
year, and we have some concerns about that level.
(167)

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Finally, we will again hear from Mr. Livingood, this time as
chairman of the Capitol Guide Board. Also present is Tom Stevens,
the head of the Capitol Guide Service and Congressional Special
Services Office.
The Board is requesting $8.5 million for the Guide Service. This
is an increase of $4.6 million over the current budget, with the expectation that 71 additional guides and visitor services employees
will be needed to operate the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) in fiscal
year 2007.
Before we begin this hearing, I would like to say thank you to
outgoing Chief Terry Gainer. Today is his last day on the job, and
I appreciate all the good work he has done to improve the Capitol
Police force and serve the Congress. The department is stronger,
better trained and equipped, and more capable than when Chief
Gainer took the helm 2 years ago. I wish him luck in his next adventure.
Before I finish my statements, we have Senator Burns, Mr. Pickle, who has some questions that he has asked us to put forward.
After the hearing, we will submit those questions to you with the
hope that you can get back with a response within 10 days. So, if
you could respond to those questions at a later date after we have
finished the hearing, we would appreciate that, Mr. Pickle. And so,
having made that initial request, Mr. Pickle, please go ahead. We
look forward to hearing your comments.
STATEMENT OF WILLIAM H. PICKLE

Mr. PICKLE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thanks again for inviting me to testify this morning. As I have said in the last 2 or 3
years that I have been here and appeared before this subcommittee, I am so pleased to represent the hundreds of men and
women who comprise the Office of the Sergeant at Arms. I dont
think you are going to find a more dedicated or committed group
of Federal employees anywhere, and I am sure that you and this
subcommittee share that belief as well, after witnessing the great
job they do. Mr. Chairman, I have a much more formal statement.
You stole a little of my thunder in your opening remarks. So, I am
going to ask that my formal statement be submitted for the record,
and I will just talk for a couple of minutes, if I may.
As you indicated, we have asked for about $224 million or about
a 12.8-percent increase over our 2006 appropriation. These funds
will continue to allow us to provide the service that is so important
to the Senate. In particular, the increase that is reflected in this
budget covers our telecommunications modernization project. It
also covers 34 positions, as you indicated, 17 of which are designated for the CVC. The other positions are spread out over our
areas of technology and security. In addition, we are funding some
initiatives in our Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness.
These initiatives havent been fully covered previously in any recurring budget request, and I think probably what we are going to see
in out-years, too, is continued growth in that area. But this year,
there is a sizable increase, as you noted, in our security and emergency preparedness allocation.
Mr. Chairman, in my formal statement, I talk about a number
of challenges that we have met successfully and a number of ac-

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complishments that this office, and particularly the staff, has
achieved. I want to take a minute to introduce the senior management team here, because they are outstanding. I am going to start
with my Deputy Sergeant at Arms, Lynne Halbrooks. The Executive Assistant who is the Democratic Leaders Representative is
Nancy Erickson. Greg Hanson is our Chief Information Officer and
Assistant Sergeant at Arms. Chuck Kaylor is the Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Security and Emergency Preparedness. Al
Concordia is the Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Police Operations
and Liaison. Esther Gordon is the Assistant Sergeant at Arms for
Operations, and Dan Strodel is our General Counsel. I also want
to acknowledge, and I know he is going to be a little embarrassed
by this, my Chief Financial Officer, Chris Dey. Chris works very
closely with Carrie Apostolou and Nancy Olkewicz, and Chris is the
ultimate professional, as Carrie and Nancy can attest to. He keeps
us straight. He keeps me out of financial problems with this subcommittee, and we are just very delighted to have him.
Senator ALLARD. I appreciate you introducing your staff and having them here this morning.
I couldnt agree with you more, I think you have got a good staff.
GUIDING PRINCIPALS

Mr. PICKLE. Thank you very much. I appreciate that. Last year,
when I testified, I talked about the three guiding principals that
we follow in doing a better job here at the Senate. The first one
is to continue to maintain security of this complex. Since 9/11, the
whole world has changed here. Maintaining security is very expensive and very complex, and we work closely with the Capitol Police
to do the best job we can. The second focus is to follow the leaderships mandate to provide state-of-the-art technology. I dont think
anyone can ever have state-of-the-art technology. You know,
Moores Law says everything changes every 112 years or so. Well,
we are close to state-of-the-art, and its only because of this subcommittees support that we have reached the level that we have.
And finally, its rather cliche, but customer service continues to be
a guiding force in the Sergeant at Arms office. It is used over and
over again, and sometimes it loses its meaning. But when you have
over 100 business units as we do and roughly 950 people working
here within the Office of the Sergeant at Arms, you have a lot of
exposure to a very demanding community. I think our people do a
great job. I often hear about it when we dont. I seldom hear about
it when we do. But we try, they try, and customer service is still
our priority.
STRATEGIC PLAN

Mr. Chairman, there is one final thing I want to do. I want to

talk briefly about our strategic plan. I know how important GPRA
is to you, and I know how you like to hold each of the agencies
under you accountable. We have been working on a strategic plan
for the last 6 to 9 months. Its a very comprehensive plan. I think
that you will see the seriousness with which we view this plan, and
I expect to share it with the subcommittee very soon. We would
welcome any comments from you or your staff.
Senator ALLARD. Very good. We look forward to that.

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Mr. PICKLE. Thank you. Finally, I want to digress for just a moment. You mentioned Chief Terry Gainer, and I just want to acknowledge, on our part from the Senate side, how much we will
miss him. Chief Gainer is the ultimate professional. I think he is
arguably one of the best Chiefs of Police in the country. When you
talk to people in the law enforcement community, they echo those
sentiments. We often use the word leadership. Leadership is important. And we always say you know leadership when you see it.
Well, when you see Terry Gainer, you see leadership. We may not
always agree with him, but he is one of the main reasons we have
such an outstanding department, such a professional department.
And I think he will be sorely missed, but we wish him bon voyage
and Godspeed. Mr. Chairman, that concludes my oral remarks, and
Id be happy to take questions.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF THE

HONORABLE WILLIAM H. PICKLE

INTRODUCTION

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for inviting me to
testify before you today. I am pleased to report on the progress the Office of the
Sergeant at Arms (SAA) has made over the past year and our plans to enhance our
contributions to the Senate in the coming year.
For fiscal year 2007, the Sergeant at Arms respectfully requests a total budget
of $224,043,000, an increase of $25,343,000 (or 12.8 percent) over the fiscal year
2006 budget. This request will allow us to maintain the improvements and level of
service we provide to the Senate community. It will also fund 34 new staff members
who will maintain the Senates expansion space in the Capitol Visitor Center and
develop and maintain business and network security applications, among other support services. Appendix A, accompanying this testimony, elaborates on the specific
components of our fiscal year 2007 budget request.
Last year I testified before this Committee and reported on our progress in accomplishing three priorities: (1) ensuring the United States Senate is as secure and prepared for an emergency as possible; (2) providing the Senate outstanding service
and support, including the enhanced use of technology; and (3) delivering exceptional customer service to the Senate. These priorities continue to guide the Office
of the Sergeant at Arms.
This year I am pleased to highlight some of this offices activities including a new
strategic plan we are developing and the challenges we have overcome since last
year. Our accomplishments in the areas of security and preparedness, information
technology, and operations are also impressive. We are preparing for next year by
planning for the major events we know will come and by ensuring that the Office
of the Sergeant at Arms is an agile organization that can adjust to the unexpected.
An outstanding senior management team leads the efforts of the dedicated Sergeant at Arms staff. Lynne M. Halbrooks serves as my Deputy, and she and I are
joined by Administrative Assistant Rick Edwards, Executive Assistant Nancy
Erickson, General Counsel Dan Strodel, Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Security
and Emergency Preparedness Chuck Kaylor, Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Police
Operations Albert V. Concordia, Assistant Sergeant at Arms and Chief Information
Officer J. Greg Hanson, and Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Operations Esther L.
Gordon. The many accomplishments set forth in this testimony would not have been
possible without this teams leadership and commitment.
The Office of the Sergeant at Arms also works with other organizations that support the Senate. I would like to take this opportunity to mention how important
their contributions have been in helping us achieve our objectives. In particular, we
work regularly with the Secretary of the Senate, the Architect of the Capitol, the
Office of the Attending Physician, and the U.S. Capitol Police. When appropriate,
we coordinate our efforts with the U.S. House of Representatives and the agencies
of the Executive Branch. I am impressed by the people with whom we work, and
pleased with the quality of the relationships we have built together.
This is my third year testifying before this Committee and I would be remiss if
I did not mention how proud I continue to be of the men and women with whom
I work. The employees of the Office of the Sergeant at Arms are some of the most

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committed and creative in government. We have made huge strides as an organization these past three years.
None of our efforts would be accomplished, though, without the guidance of this
Committee and the Committee on Rules and Administration. Thank you for the support you consistently demonstrate as we work to serve the Senate.
Strategic Plan
The Office of the Sergeant at Arms is developing a comprehensive strategic plan
and performance goals for services we provide. The plan will establish the level of
performance that the Senate expects from us, and will help us build on our
strengths and address weaknesses.
During my tenure with the Senate, I have seen how Sergeant at Arms staff works
to continuously improve the level of service it delivers to this institution. Our strategic plan acknowledges this dedication and skill, and provides guidance on how to
focus these efforts. The plan documents the mission, vision, values, and principles
of this office, so our employees, our customers, and Senate Leadership will know
what our objectives are and how we plan to achieve them.
We already deliver outstanding service to the Senate, and this strategic plan will
help us continue to do so. I look forward to presenting this Committee with the strategic plan later this year. It was developed with the input of all levels of management, and, I believe, accurately lays a clear roadmap for the future of this organization.
Customer Service and Support
One priority of the strategic plan is to promote within the Office of the Sergeant
at Arms a culture that is focused on excellence in customer service. Every aspect
of our work at the Senate focuses on serving the Senators, staff members, and the
public. Our efforts in the areas of security, information technology, and operations
all focus on providing services that the Senate needs to function properly. Our customers usually are Senate staff, but they also include anyone who contacts the Senate and members of the media who report about the institution. As a measure of
our overall focus on customer service, almost one-quarter of the staff of this office
provides direct customer support: Capitol Operators; Appointments Desk staff;
Media Gallery staff; customer support analysts; telecommunications representatives;
dedicated customer support personnel in our print shop, Recording Studio, and Photography Studio; and Help Desk contractors.
Major Challenges of the Past Year
As is true every year, this past year has offered several challenges to the Office
of the Sergeant at Arms. Besides frequent suspicious item alerts, the Senate had
air space incursion alerts and the recent Russell Senate Office Building evacuation.
The Judiciary Committee held confirmation hearings for John G. Roberts in midSeptember 2005 and for Samuel A. Alito in early January 2006. In August 2005,
Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, and affected
the ability of several Senate state offices to serve their constituents. These events
highlight how effectively this office, in conjunction with the Senate support organizations and Legislative Branch agencies with which we work, has adopted procedures that enable us to rise to these challenges.
Building Evacuations.On May 11, 2005, the Capitol Police evacuated the Capitol and Senate and House Office Buildings due to an incoming aircraft. The actions
of the police were exemplary, and the Members, staff, and visitors cooperated fully
during the evacuation. When the next air space intrusion happened about one
month later, we were even more prepared and an assembly area for Senators was
activated.
On February 8, 2006, a hazardous material alarm sounded in the Russell Building. The alarm indicated the presence of a substance that was potentially hazardous, and people in the Russell Building were directed by the Capitol Police to
move to the Legislative Garage. Senators and staff moved to the garage, where they
sheltered in place for about three hours.
Immediately staff from the Sergeant at Arms and other Senate offices prepared
to open a Senate Emergency Operations Center and started implementing their
emergency plans. As an example, our contract IT Help Desk staff that was evacuated to the garage ensured the continuity of Help Desk operations by shifting the
function to technicians located off-site. All of these activities follow the established
protocols for this kind of emergency.
The atmosphere in the Russell Building and the Legislative Garage was marked
by a distinct sense of calm and control that lasted from the start of the incident
through its completion. Fortunately, the investigation found no hazardous material,
and Senators and staff left safely.

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This event demonstrated how the Capitol Police, as well as the Sergeant at Arms
Offices of Police Operations and Security and Emergency Preparedness have made
progress over the past few years in establishing a controlled, efficient response to
incidents at the Senate. The coordinated and measured response met the Senates
needs for information and for security.
Hurricane Katrina.Even before Hurricane Katrina hit on August 29, 2005, Sergeant at Arms staff was working to ensure affected state offices would be able to
recover quickly. After the hurricane, some members of our staff assisted from Washington, D.C., while others went to the area to help with the recovery and with the
family assistance center.
A wide range of SAA staff participated in the state offices recovery. Our State
Office Liaison was the first point of contact for the offices, ensuring that they knew
how to contact us and others who could help. CIO staff members also played pivotal
roles. Before the hurricane, they inventoried equipment in the threatened offices
and readied replacement equipment. They also made sure that telephone calls to the
state offices would be forwarded to another location if the staff evacuated.
The first priority of the staff in the Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama offices
was their safety and the safety of their families. Within days, though, they got back
to work, connecting constituents with the services they needed. To do this, they
needed access to space, computers, telephones, and power.
SAA staff supplied the equipment and facilities that offices needed. Our State Office Liaison worked with the General Services Administration to find facilities that
staff could use while their offices were unavailable. The CIOs team improvised
ways to transport equipment to the area; they sent equipment to the closest place
with delivery service and determined the next steps from there. In one case, they
even sent satellite telephones to the area with another elected official. Additionally,
the CIOs staff monitored the status of the circuits and networks, configured and
shipped equipment to each affected site, installed LAN drops, and provided dial-up
modems and frame relay circuits. One staff member spent a month in Mississippi
supporting the Capitol Police mobile radio system.
Across the SAA, staff members were diligent in their efforts to help the state offices become operational. The security and emergency preparedness team obtained
satellite telephones for the affected Senators, and sent staff to the area to work with
the family assistance center. The Telecommunications Operations team revised calling arrangements for forwarded numbers and coordinated the delivery of service
and equipment to temporary locations. Customer Support Analysts made sure that
offices received the services they needed, and the Employee Assistance Program provided counseling support to staff in the area.
The work of the SAA helped Senate state offices recover quickly. We had the ability and the resources to provide even more support, and we were prepared to do
so in advance of Hurricane Rita. These hurricanes and their impact on state offices
demonstrated how important it is that our continuity of operations and emergency
preparedness efforts reach beyond Washington, D.C.
Support for Senate Events.During Senate events, the staff of the Office of the
Sergeant at Arms fills crucial roles supporting the Senates tradition of dignity and
public access while implementing comprehensive security. Since my last testimony
before this Committee, this office has supported the Lying-in-Honor of Rosa Parks,
the annual State of the Union address, joint sessions of Congress, visits by dignitaries, and high-profile hearings. This past year, two of the most visible events
were the hearings for John G. Roberts and Samuel A. Alito.
In advance of the Roberts hearings, Sergeant at Arms security staff and the Capitol Police worked with the Judiciary and Rules Committees to implement the appropriate level of security. Technology and Media Galleries staff enhanced the ability of the press to gather information and file stories during these historic events.
Temporary telephone lines, systems, and office equipment were provided. We implemented both wired and wireless infrastructure so media representatives could file
stories and pictures in almost real time. The press and the public were accommodated, security was ensured, and the logistics surrounding the hearings never became the focus of the story.
We have a systematic approach for determining security measures for the many
activities at the Senate and across the Capitol. The Capitol Police, with our guidance and support, established a standard matrix that they apply to Congressional
events. This matrix helps the police evaluate threat intelligence, logistics needs, and
various criteria related to the events; determine what level of security each event
requires; and assign the appropriate resources. Our Media Galleries employ postevent reviews to improve the service they provide. For major events, our technology
staff reviews past events and looks ahead to evaluate what technology is needed and

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whether a specific event requires infrastructure support beyond the level customarily available.
We have made substantial progress in supporting Senate and Capitol events over
the past several years. In the face of dramatically increased security needs, staff
from the Sergeant at Arms and other offices supporting the Senate, as well as from
across the government, coordinate their activities to provide efficient behind-thescenes services to facilitate these historic Congressional events.
SECURITY AND PREPAREDNESS: PROTECTING THE SENATE AND PLANNING FOR THE
UNKNOWN

In our security and preparedness programs, we work collaboratively with organizations across Capitol Hill to secure the Senate. We also rely upon Senate Leadership, this Committee, and the Committee on Rules and Administration for guidance
and support.
Almost five years ago, our security programs started in earnest in response to an
immediate need to protect the Senate and enable it to function in the midst of the
catastrophic events that were occurring. Our programs are now proven and they ensure the continuity of the Senates operations and the safety of its Members, staff,
and visitors both here in Washington, D.C., and in the state offices. Events of this
past year have offered opportunities to consolidate our efforts and ensure that they
are comprehensive and systematic. These efforts integrate information technology
with our security initiatives to deliver a comprehensive approach to security that
takes advantage of all of the tools that are available to the Senate.
Our efforts to ensure that we can respond to emergencies and keep the Senate
functioning under any circumstance have grown over the past years. To continue
improvements in this area and better manage our security and preparedness programs, we have established seven strategic priorities to focus our efforts: Emergency
Notification and Communications; State Office Security and Preparedness; Emergency Plans, Organizations, and Facilities; Training; Exercises; Office Services; and
Accountability.
Each of the above elements reflects a distinct set of activities that support the
Senate and that build on the Senates layered security strategy, which is the framework we use to address security challenges.
Emergency Notification and Communications
Our emergency notification and communications initiatives ensure that we have
effective communications systems, devices, and capabilities in place to support the
Senate during an emergency. We have improved our notification and communications processes over the past year. We expanded the coverage and speed of delivering text alerts to the Senate when we integrated BlackBerry and e-mail alerts and
notifications into one process within the Capitol Police. We expanded the telephonic
alert system so it now includes more Senate staff members and its notification process is significantly faster. With an automated process for maintaining emergency
contact information, each office can now use a Web interface to maintain staff emergency contact information and can designate the recipients of alert and notification
messages. Over 1,100 wireless annunciators are in place across the Senate and the
Capitol Police have completed the installation of a public address system that can
broadcast into public areas throughout the Capitol and Senate Office Buildings.
Further, if the Senate is forced to relocate, we have the capability to video teleconference and broadcast between an emergency relocation site and other Legislative Branch and Executive Branch sites.
Looking forward, we are prototyping a system to use Senate Cable Television to
broadcast staff alerts and notifications. We are also testing an expansion of our
emergency BlackBerry messaging to include additional carriers.
State Office Security and Preparedness
Extending security and emergency preparedness programs to Senate state offices
remains an important objective of the Sergeant at Arms, and this past years natural disasters point out the importance of this program. Over the past several years
we have expanded physical security and continuity planning support to offices
across the country. Physical security has been enhanced in 120 state offices, with
51 of the 120 offices completed in the past year. We are working with another 161
state offices on their individual security enhancements. Our emergency planning
support emphasizes including state offices in each Members continuity planning.
This year we are embarking on a major project to develop and implement a comprehensive program for state office security and preparedness. The program will establish guidelines, training, references, online tools, and other materials to help

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state offices develop and sustain comprehensive security, emergency preparedness,
and continuity planning.
Emergency Plans, Organizations and Facilities
Our emergency plans ensure that we attend to the safety of Senate Members and
staff, and the continuity of the Senate in an emergency. I can report that every
Member office has completed an Emergency Action Plan that is on record with our
Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness.
We provide a range of publications and support for establishing, maintaining, and
testing emergency and continuity plans. The publications include the Senates Planning Guide, which covers both emergency preparedness and continuity planning. We
established working groups to identify and address communications, facilities, transportation, and continuity. One gap we have already identified is the need for postevent care and family assistance. We are establishing plans to provide critical services to affected families following a wide-spread event. In cooperation with the Senates Employee Assistance Program, we have conducted training with a core group
of employees to establish peer support teams. That training will expand this year.
Training
Training helps Senate staff know what to expect in an emergency and how to use
the equipment we provide. We train office staff to create continuity plans and emergency plans, to use the accountability systems, and to work with other staff members if a traumatic event does occur. Our training program is coordinated through
the Joint Office of Education and Training.
Training activities over the past year included 56 escape hood training sessions
that were delivered to 1,639 staff members; 19 chemical, biological, radiological, and
explosives briefings for 358 staff; 10 intern orientations reaching 805 staff; 66 emergency action plan training sessions reaching 78 staff; eight training sessions on
emergency supply kits reaching 55 staff; nine victim rescue unit training sessions
for 35 staff; 15 office emergency coordinator basic and advanced training sessions
reaching 131 staff; 16 emergency preparedness updates attended by 220 staff; nine
mobility impaired classes; two shelter-in-place seminars attended by 50 staff; one
family assistance center workshop attended by 35 staff; and special topic seminars
for 140 staff. We also developed three new continuity planning classes and delivered
13 of them to 150 staff.
Exercises
We have a comprehensive exercise program to validate, evaluate, and practice existing Senate emergency plans, identify gaps in those plans, and establish and verify
new requirements. This year we conducted nine major exercises in partnership with
the Capitol Police and other Legislative Branch agencies, as well as a number of
drills such as office building evacuations and other smaller-scale activities. We test
our alert systems every month by sending test messages to all designated staff
members. As part of our effort to continuously improve these processes, we implemented a system that catalogs and addresses observations and findings related to
the Senates emergency response programs.
Office Services
Over the past year we created and distributed informational and training brochures to Senate offices. We distributed 3,000 Emergency Annunciator System brochures; 6,500 Quick2000 Escape Hood brochures; and 6,500 Victim Rescue Unit brochures. What Every Staff Member Should Know About Emergencies at the United
States Senate was distributed to 4,500 people; Senate Office Building Evacuation
Procedures for Those with Mobility Impairments had a distribution of 3,000. We distributed 3,000 Emergency Supply Kits brochures; 2,000 copies of Im Safe Phone
Home; and 3,500 copies of the Emergency Preparedness Guide. In addition, we
worked with 105 offices to create tailored emergency information cards, over 4,000
of which have been distributed.
We also published articles and notifications on key security and preparedness topics, and completed the rollout of much of our emergency preparedness equipment.
Wireless emergency annunciators have been located across the Senate, and we participated in developing and fielding automated emergency defibrillators in our office
buildings. We have deployed almost 1,200 Victim Rescue Units Senate-wide to supplement the escape hood program, and we distributed 407 Emergency Supply Kits
to Senate offices. Over 20,000 items of equipment that have been distributed to offices and throughout Senate buildings have been inventoried and checked for serviceability.
As a last item, the public address system is fully operational in all the Senate
Office Buildings, garages, cafeterias, and in the Senate Child Care Center and the

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Page dorm. The system will be used to give instructions in the public areas of buildings during an emergency.
Accountability
During a threat or an incident, we must be able to establish an accurate and
timely accounting of Senate Members and staff. In conjunction with the Capitol Police, we placed into production a system that provides the ability to take office accountability reports using tablet computers and wireless technology. The system
maintains a database for personnel accountability in the event of emergency. It provides office managers and staff with the ability to construct lists for notification, delegate responsibilities for continuity activities, and track the status of office staff in
an emergency. To date, 140 Senate Member and Committee offices have been
trained to use the system.
We deployed a planning template that helps offices establish emergency action
plans and keep them up to date. We trained 78 Office Emergency Coordinators and
Chiefs of Staff on accounting for staff members, and also trained 220 staff members
in emergency preparedness this past year.
As we move forward we are prototyping a remote check-in capability that will use
BlackBerry devices and will enable staff to check in without reporting to the assembly area. We are also testing a system that will provide a secure way to account
for Senators at a Briefing Center or Alternate Chamber. The system will be able
to be updated real-time.
Mail Safety
In addition to the priorities and programs outlined above, a critical aspect of our
security stems from the anthrax and ricin incidents in the past years.
As a result of these serious exposures, all mail and packages coming into the Senate are tested, whether they come through the U.S. Postal Service or from other delivery services. We have outstanding processing procedures in place here at the Senate. The organizations that know the most about securing mail cite the Senate mail
facility as among the best, and when other government agencies look for ways to
improve their mail security, they visit our facility.
Last year, the Senate Post Office processed and delivered over 14,200,000 items
to Senate offices, including over 10,000,000 pieces of U.S. Postal Service mail; almost 4,000,000 pieces of internal mail that are routed within the Senate and other
government agencies; almost 70,000 packages; and over 150,000 courier items. And
we are good stewards of taxpayer dollars in the process; we processed about 90 percent of the number of items that the House of Representatives processed and we
accomplished it for just over one-third of the cost that the House incurred.
Early in fiscal year 2007 we anticipate moving into a newly constructed Senate
Mail Facility that will include state-of-the-art mail and package inspection and testing. The new facility will provide a safer and more secure work environment for
Post Office employees. The Senate Post Office will continue to process U.S. Postal
Service mail at the new facility using the techniques we currently use. Once we
move into the new facility, we will also take over package processing, which is currently provided by a vendor. We expect that bringing the processing of packages in
house will increase the security of the packages and will save the Senate over
$200,000 annually.
Foreign Codels
Our security efforts are not limited to Capitol Hill, but also include security for
Senators on foreign Congressional delegations. The Consolidated Appropriations
Act, 2005 authorized Capitol Police officers to travel outside the United States in
a liaison capacity to coordinate security arrangements for Senators traveling individually or as part of a CODEL. SAA staff, the Capitol Police, and the Department
of State have moved forward on implementing this authority. Capitol Police officers
have been trained, and, over the next year, will start accompanying the State Department security personnel to enhance the security for Senators when they travel
overseas.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: A STRATEGY FOR SECURITY AND CUSTOMER SERVICE

We continue to place special emphasis on leveraging technology to enhance security, emergency preparedness, service, and support for the United States Senate.
Last year we created the Senates first Information Technology Strategic Plan, An
IT Vision for Security, Customer Service and Teamwork at the United States Senate
20052007, and this year we are half-way through executing that plan. We have already accomplished some impressive results.

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The Senates state-of-the-art alternate computing facility, which helps us ensure
the Senates continuity if an event prevents us from using our primary computing facility, has been completed and fully tested.
We continue to measure our customers satisfaction, and to set goals for each
year. This year, we set the goal at 80 percent satisfaction, and we exceeded that
goal by earning a total customer satisfaction score of 85 percent, based on a 70
percent response rate from offices.
The Senates first security operations center, a state-of-the art command center
to detect electronic threats and protect the Senate from them, has been developed and implemented.
We have implemented the Active Directory and Messaging Architecture in 99
percent of the Senates offices. This project, the largest and most successful infrastructure project ever undertaken in the Senate, provides a state-of-the-art
messaging infrastructure tailored to meet each offices security and privacy requirements.
We have installed 95 percent of an award-winning wireless infrastructure that
supports cellular telephones, BlackBerry emergency communication devices, and
data communications across the Senate campus.
An IT Vision for Security, Customer Service and Teamwork at the United States
Senate 20052007 provided a structure for setting priorities and guiding our activities. The plan outlines a strategic technology vision, mission, and five broad information technology strategic goals. The first annual revision of the plan, An IT Vision for Security, Customer Service and Teamwork at the United States Senate 2006
2008, was recently produced. This updated plan will enable us to serve the Senate
better by:
Reducing paper-based manual processes and moving business online,
Developing a consulting practice to align our information technology organization with the Senates business requirements, and
Creating new information security and assurance initiatives to protect the Senates technology infrastructure and data from new forms of security threats.
We continue to invest in information technology and are pursuing major initiatives to support the Senate. The increased staffing levels requested will enable us
to support new business applications, IT security, and inventory management.
Secure, Accessible, Flexible and Reliable Systems in a Modern Information Infrastructure
We are improving the security of the information infrastructure that protects
data, respects privacy, enables continuous Senate operations, and supports our
emergency and continuity plans. Our efforts over the past year have enabled us to
support alternate sites and the replication of information, as well as emergency and
contingency communications. We are delivering increased support for remote access
and are completing the in-building wireless infrastructure. A significant commitment to information technology security will increasingly protect the Senate from
external threats, and the multi-year telecommunications modernization project will
improve the reliability of the infrastructure. This work all focuses on improving the
ability of the Senate to accomplish its mission.
Alternate Sites and Information Replication
We continue to develop our ability to relocate information systems capability at
the alternate computing facility (ACF). Every critical Senate enterprise information
system has been replicated there, and this past December we conducted the first
comprehensive test of the facility; the Senates primary computing facilities were
shut down completely and reconstituted at the ACF. This comprehensive exercise,
which we intend to repeat twice a year, was a complete success. It also provided
our technical staff with an opportunity to practice the procedures they would have
to perform in an emergency.
This past year, with guidance from the Committee on Rules and Administration,
we provided the Senates Leadership Offices and Committees the capability to replicate all of their data files at the ACF. As of February 2006, all of the Leadership
Offices and seventeen Committees had taken advantage of this capability, which
provides the Senate with an unprecedented ability to access institutional data in the
event of an emergency.
Emergency and Contingency Communications
We have a comprehensive array of communications systems and options available
so the Senate will be able to communicate in an emergency. This year we conducted
final testing on our two Senate emergency response communications vehicles. These
vehicles have network, telephone, and satellite connectivity, and provide the ability
to relocate much of the Senates information infrastructure virtually anywhere. We

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have trained deployment teams and are updating the vehicles concept of operations
documents.
Remote Access
Senate Continuity of Operations and reconstitution sites have been equipped with
telecommunications, data networks, and video teleconferencing. Additionally, mobile
and remote computing technologies allow Senate staff to access and modify their information and communicate from virtually anywhere, anytime. We provide enhanced, secure access to e-mail, files, the Senate intranet, and a host of applications.
We also added the ability to provide inexpensive, secure access to our network from
overseas. We will continue to enhance and expand these capabilities in order to support a potentially dispersed workforce and provide the ability to telecommute.
In-Building Wireless Infrastructure
This past year we completed installation of an in-building wireless infrastructure
in all of the Senate Office Buildings. We are now working in the Capitol; the basement and attic levels are complete, and we will finish installation in the rest of the
building this year. This innovative system, which won a Government Computing
News Best Practices Award, improved signal strengths for the carrier for data-only
BlackBerry service and for the major cellular telephone carriers. The infrastructure
provides coverage in areas where it was previously poor or non-existent and enables
Senate staff to connect back to their offices wirelessly. The system has substantially
paid for itself, saving taxpayers nearly $3 million, because the carriers are paying
us for the right to use it.
Securing our Information Infrastructure
During a recent four-month period, our most visible IT system, the Senates
website www.senate.gov, was the target of over 17 million discrete unsuccessful security events from almost 200,000 different Internet addresses. A recent external security review of the site helped us make some adjustments that will secure the site
even more, but the site itself is a prime target for attacks.
Similar to security in the physical world, security in the information technology
world requires constant vigilance and the ability to deter attacks. The threats to our
information infrastructure are increasing in frequency and sophistication, and they
come from spyware, adware, malware, trojans, keyloggers, spybots, adbots, and
trackware, all of which continuously search for vulnerabilities in our systems. Countering the evolving threat environment means increasing our awareness of the situation, improving our processes, and continually researching, testing, and deploying
new security technologies. Because we have very little advance notice of new types
of attacks, we have flexible security control structures and processes that are continually revised and adjusted.
Protecting the Senates information is one of the most important responsibilities
of the Sergeant at Arms. This year we have taken tremendous strides in this area
with the development and operation of the Senates first security operations center
(SOC). A redundant SOC is currently under construction at the alternate computing
facility to ensure the Senates continuity of information security operations. The
mission of the SOC is to identify and understand threats, assess vulnerabilities,
identify failure points and bottlenecks, determine potential impacts, and remedy
problems before they adversely affect Senate operations. With the SOC, we implement proactive and preemptive actions to deter and thwart attacks on the Senates
information infrastructure and prevent compromise of precious and sensitive data.
We augment this capability with close liaisons to other federal agencies to ensure
we have the most up-to-date information and techniques for combating the threats.
Running within the SOC, a state-of-the-art security information management system aggregates and reports on data from a variety of sources worldwide to help us
track potential attackers before they can harm us. The combination of the security
operations center, our defense-in-depth capability at all levels of our network infrastructure, and our enterprise anti-virus/anti-spyware programs have proven highly
effective.
One way we determine success in IT security is by measuring and tracking what
does not happen. Because of improved processes, cooperation across the Senate, and
improved security technologies, we have not experienced a systemic outage within
our IT infrastructure due to a security incident in two years. Yet the threat environment, as measured by detected security incidents, remains very high. The Senate
relies on electronic mail to carry out its business functions. In the past 90 days, our
e-mail anti-virus controls detected and eradicated over 1.5 million infected e-mail
attachments destined for Senate accounts. Other anti-virus/worm controls detected
and countered 148,472 viral events from 709 computers located in 120 Senate offices
between November 20, 2005, and February 20, 2006. During this same period, a

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daily average of only 2530 individual computers showed signs of infection. To date,
136 Senate offices use the managed anti-virus systems, and the systems protect over
11,000 Senate computers. This is one of the main reasons that worm outbreaks affect only about 60 Senate computers while just two years ago, outbreaks infected
several thousand and caused notable disruption. Our anti-virus products are comprehensive.
Information security must continue to be an area of emphasis and growth. We will
continue to invest in this technology and we plan to increase the size of this group
during fiscal year 2007.
The Senate Telecommunications Modernization Program
We are currently in the midst of a multi-year plan to modernize the Senates entire telecommunications infrastructure. The modernization will provide improved reliability and redundancy to support daily operations and continuity concerns, and
will take advantage of technological advances to provide a more flexible and robust
communications infrastructure. During this past year we completed gathering the
requirements and we now are in the final stages of preparing a request for proposals to be released this spring. We anticipate entering into a contract this summer
to upgrade or replace Senate telecommunications systems, including the main
DMS100 telephone switch, G3i PBX, Conference Bridge, fax broadcast system,
Group Alert System, voice mail system, and the telecommunications management
system that we use for provisioning of telephone service and to generate the telephone bills and directories.
Most of the Senates voice communications infrastructure is based on older technologies. Under the telecommunications modernization program, we will re-engineer
this infrastructure to provide redundancy for increased reliability and availability
resulting in a state-of-the-art system built upon converged voice, data, and video
communications technologies. This approach will allow economies of scale in construction and management, and from the users side, the ability in the future to
have a synchronized audio and video conference with document sharing and collaboration at their workstation. Users may also be able to access live or archived video
on their workstation, and combine information from a database with a telephone
call that is being transferred from one person to another.
Modern Technology to Enhance Customer Service
Customer Service, Satisfaction, and Communications
We continue to pay attention to how well we meet the Senates technology needs.
Our third annual CIO Customer Satisfaction survey revealed that we reached an
overall customer satisfaction rating of 85 percent. We have conducted follow-up surveys for the last two years, and our customer satisfaction rating increased in each
of those years. These results are very exciting and they indicate that we are moving
in the right direction. The Customer Satisfaction survey helps the CIO organization
develop a focused customer satisfaction action plan.
This year, to provide status and critical information about Senate systems more
quickly, we instituted a comprehensive system outage notification strategy linking
e-mail notifications, Help Desk activity, and the Senates intranet to report system
outage information in near-real time. Another new and innovative communication
approach we implemented is a CIO Web log or blog, which uses the power of the
intranet as a communication channel to disseminate information to our customers
quickly.
We opened a new technology resource center in March that serves as a common
technology document repository and technical library. This facility, with both hardcopy documents and an on-line library, is an outstanding resource for sharing technical information and for documenting and recording business practices for continuity purposes.
In addition to our annual comprehensive survey, our Help Desk follows all of its
service calls with a customer satisfaction survey. This past year our Help Desk contractor consistently posted customer satisfaction results at or above 96 percent.
A New Information Technology Support Contract
The final option period of our current IT support contract ends in September
2007. Due to the contracts large size, importance with respect to customer service,
and complexity, we have begun the process of constructing a request for proposals
that incorporates the lessons we have learned during the current contract. We expect to release the request for proposals during the summer of 2006, with contract
award in early 2007. We plan to allow for a transition period to ensure minimal disruption or degradation in service quality.

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A Robust, Reliable, Modern Messaging Architecture
We are completing deployment of the comprehensive Active Directory and Messaging Architecture that provides a spectrum of options for data management that
ranges from centralized to distributed. A great success story, this project began in
2003 with the three primary goals of providing a computing platform that would enable offices to replace servers running the now-unsupported Windows NT 4 operating system, improving the messaging system, and providing offices with choices
to meet their varying business needs. Technical design was led by CIO staff with
support from our vendor partners. The design options were presented to Senate offices along with the expected impact on each office of migrating all computers, user
accounts, and e-mail. We committed to specific time frames for completing each office migration, and we met those timeframes for every office.
Web-Based and Customer-Focused Business Applications
The CIO completed the design for the first Senate services portal this year. Based
on requirements of Senate Leadership and the Committee on Rules and Administration, the portal, called TranSAAct, will move paper-based, manual processes to the
Web. TranSAAct will allow Member offices to manage and track invoices for SAA
services through a Web interface, and it will provide access to a host of Web-based
applications, such as the on-line Service Academy Nominations System. Built on an
extensible modern database framework, TranSAAct will allow for expansion as new
applications are added. With the formal design of TranSAActs first phase complete,
we are currently engaged with the Administrative Managers Steering Group in a
user verification and validation process that will lead to complete development and
Senate-wide rollout later this year.
We have continued delivering support to the Secretary of the Senate through improvements and enhancements of the Financial Management Information System
(FMIS) and the Legislative Information System (LIS). We worked with the Secretary supporting FMIS by providing four Web FMIS releases which added
functionality, improvements to the user interface, and enhancements to disaster recovery processes.
Enhanced Communications and Infrastructure
A variety of projects will provide enhanced communications within and between
offices. Enhanced communications are being delivered on an improved network infrastructure, and frame relay bandwidth to the state offices has been significantly
increased to support videoconferencing and data replication. The highly successful
videoconferencing program, which enables staff members in Capitol Hill offices to
conduct videoconferences with state offices and other remote locations, has installed
nearly 400 endpoints to date. The electronic fax program is replacing stand-alone
fax machines with an integrated server-based fax system that eliminates paper. We
anticipate completion of the enterprise tape backup system during this year; the
system already automatically backs up over one hundred servers located in our primary computing facility to the alternate computing facility.
Promoting Modern Information Technology in the Senate
A new Technology Demonstration Center, located with our customers in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, was opened this past year. At the Center, customers can
try all of the available information technology equipment before making purchases.
We also use the Center for live demonstrations of new and emerging technologies.
We anticipate more of these types of activities in the Demonstration Center in the
upcoming year.
Last year we hosted two highly successful Senate Emerging Technology Conferences and Exhibitions to expose Senate staff members to new technologies and
concepts. These conferences are designed around technology themes of immediate
interest Senate-wide.
In order to perform technology assessments, feasibility analysis, and proof of concept studies, we recently created an advanced technology assessment laboratory.
Technologies and solutions are vetted and tested here prior to being announced for
pilot, prototype, or mass deployment to the Senate. Results of studies performed in
the laboratory are published on the emerging technology page of the CIOs intranet
site on Webster. To ensure that the laboratory considers the proper technologies and
solutions, we have also chartered a Senate-wide technology assessment group consisting of members of the CIO organization and our customers. The group performs
high-level requirements analysis and helps prioritize new technologies and solutions
for investigation in the laboratory, prototype development, pilot, and full-scale rollout.

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OPERATIONS AND SUPPORT: CONSISTENTLY DELIVERING EXCELLENT SERVICE

The commitment to exceptional customer service is a hallmark of the Sergeant at

Arms organization and the cornerstone of our support functions. The groups that
make up our support team continue to provide exceptional customer service to the
Senate community.
Capitol Facilities
Capitol Facilities staff works around the clock to ensure that the furniture and
furnishings are of the highest quality, cabinetry and framing are outstanding, and
the environment within the Capitol is clean and professional. We are in the process
of implementing an integrated work management system with a Web interface for
service requests. The system will enable customers to view all furnishings currently
in stock without making an escorted trip to the storage facility, to request environmental services and keys, and to view special function rooms and request set-ups.
Customers will be able to check the status of their requests through tracking numbers.
This past year we also increased our support for the Senate in our framing and
furnishings areas. We purchased a dry mounting press that expands the framing
shops capabilities by enabling permanent mounting of newspaper articles and
photos, and we implemented a furniture finishing protocol that replicates the original finish for historical pieces in the Capitol.
The opening of the Capitol Visitor Center will add 66,500 square feet of Senate
space to our responsibilities: 41,000 square feet of office space, 8,000 square feet of
meeting space, and 17,500 square feet of other space. Compared to our current obligations, we will clean and maintain almost one-third more office space and three
times more meeting space, and will furnish over 50 percent more office and meeting
space. This will require us to hire 17 new employees before the Center opens.
Printing, Graphics, and Direct Mail
Printing, Graphics, and Direct Mail, or PGDM, provides printing, photocopying,
design, and production services to the Senate. Last year, it printed 16,850,962
sheets in color (a 12 percent increase over the 2004 volume, and 400 percent increase over 2003), and it produced almost 10,000 floor charts. PGDM provides a variety of other services to the Senate including the management of the Senate Support Facility, and support for the digital scanning of incoming constituent correspondence.
Senate Support Facility.We are pleased to report that we have a new, fully operational Senate Support Facility that enables us to provide secure storage for use by
the Secretary of the Senate and the Sergeant at Arms. This facility provides a secure, climate-controlled environment to warehouse the Senates historical art and
artifacts, Senate equipment and supplies, and some of the Senates emergency
transportation vehicles. The facility came on-line this past February, and all the
contents and functions of the six previously dispersed warehouse locations have
been moved and consolidated into the new facility.
Correspondence Support.During 2005 the guidance we provided to Members
staffs on addressing outgoing mail in a format that takes full advantage of postage
discounts resulted in savings of almost $2 million. We also started offering digital
scanning of incoming constituent mail and outgoing response letters that works in
conjunction with the existing correspondence management systems. This new capability enables users to import images of their office mail. Sixteen Senate offices have
chosen to use these imaging services, and we scanned more than 240,000 documents
during the first twelve months of this program.
Employee Assistance Program
Over the past year we enhanced and expanded our Employee Assistance Program.
The program provides assessments and short-term counseling for Senate staff and
their family members twenty-four-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week. It improves the
ability of supervisors to manage troubled employees, to enhance the work environment, and to improve employee job performance. It also helps employees find the
resources they need to address some of the personal challenges they face every day.
The Employee Assistance Program coordinates with security staff to train people on
reacting to emergencies and to ensure that processes are in place to deal with emergencies.
During the past year, the EAP staff worked with people in the offices affected by
Hurricane Katrina, and built even stronger relationships with managers across the
Senate. The staff also trained a Peer Support Team that can provide immediate support to employees and their family members if they are affected by a critical event.

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Recording Studio
The Recording Studio televises the activity on the Senate Floor and in Committee
hearings, and it provides a production studio and equipment for Senators use. Last
year, it televised all 1,222 hours of Senate Floor proceedings, as well as 744 Committee hearings.
Committee Hearing Room Upgrade.In 2003 we started a project to upgrade and
install multimedia equipment in Committee hearing rooms. The project included
digital signal processing, audio systems, and broadcast-quality robotic camera systems.
To date we have installed upgrades in eight hearing rooms. Several more rooms
are scheduled for upgrades in the near future. These enhancements include improved speech intelligibility and software-based systems that we can configure based
on individual Committee needs. The systems backup will take over within minutes
if the main electronics fail, and because the system is networked, staff can automatically route audio from one hearing room to other hearing rooms to accommodate overflow crowds.
The most significant work we anticipate for the Senate Recording Studio over the
next year is its move to the Capitol Visitor Center. This move will enable the Recording Studio to complete its upgrade to a full High Definition facility, and to implement a number of improvements that have been planned to coincide with the
opening of the Center.
Education and Training
The Joint Office of Education and Training provides employee training and development opportunities for all Senate staff in Washington, D.C., and in the states.
This past year, we conducted an assessment of our training program to ensure we
are meeting the needs of the Senate community. The assessment helped us identify
skills that are fundamental to success at the Senate, including the ability to communicate effectively and collaborate well. We also identified key skills for managers
and supervisors, including the ability to motivate, create a vision, organize, and delegate. In response to the needs we identified, we will offer certificate curricula in
communications and teamwork.
The Education and Training group offered 425 classes in 2005, with 6,920 Senate
staff members taking advantage of these classes. The registration desk handled
31,960 e-mails, telephone calls, and on-line registration requests.
Of the total number of classes, the technical training group offered 187 classes
to 1,521 staff members, and provided coaching on various software packages and
other computer-related subjects to 702 staff members. The professional development
area offered 237 classes to 4,973 students, and delivered more than 50 special training and team building sessions to Member and Committee offices. The professional
development group addresses team performance, communication, and conflict resolution, and we encourage managers and supervisors to request customized training for
their offices. During the last quarter of the year, staff from the professional development group offered training through video teleconferencing to two state offices. In
the health promotion area, 1,492 staff members participated in the Annual Health
Fair held in September, and 1,240 participated in health promotion activities
throughout the year, including cancer screening, bone density screening, and seminars on health-related topics.
Most of the classes we offer are practical only for staff based in Washington, D.C.,
but we are continuing to expand our offerings to state office staff. In 2005 we offered
three sessions of the State Training Fair to 119 state office staff, and we conducted
our annual State Directors Forum for the 37 state managers and directors. The
Virtual Classroom, an Internet-based training library of over 500 courses, also enables state office staff to take advantage of the Senates training resources; 379 staff
members from state offices and Washington, D.C., have taken advantage of this
training option.
CHALLENGES FOR NEXT YEAR

We met the challenges that we faced this year, and adapted our responses to provide better service and support to the Senate. While we do not know all the challenges next year will bring, we can anticipate some of them. We expect that the
Capitol Visitor Center will open, that we will start to move forward on an enhanced
process for issuing and accounting for Congressional identification and access cards,
and that this years election will result in some changes in the membership of the
Senate. We also know that we will face challenges related to IT security, our technical infrastructure, and our work moving the Senates business to the Web. We are
planning for these changes.

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Capitol Visitor Center
The opening of the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) will affect much of the work of
this office. The Capitol Facilities group will be affected dramatically, since the work
of that group will expand to include one-third more space than it currently maintains. The opening will also affect the Senate Recording Studio, which will move
into the new space. The CVC incorporates significant security features, and we are
working with other agencies to develop the processes to ensure that the Capitol remains secure.
As part of the Capitol Visitor Center, we are installing state-of-the-art communications facilities in the Senate expansion space. We will provide a redundant communications path into the Capitol, and our in-building wireless coverage for cellular
devices will extend into the core of the Center as well as into the Senate expansion
space. We will also provide any additional office automation equipment required by
the occupants of the space. Since most of the CVCs occupants are going to relocate
from elsewhere on Capitol Hill, we do not expect to spend a significant amount of
money on new equipment.
Congressional Identification and Access Cards
The Executive Branch is implementing a major initiative to use Smart Cards as
standard identification and access cards across all departments of the federal government. We have been following the progress it is making, and are also looking
to determine how to increase the security surrounding identification and access
cards issued at the Senate and across the Legislative Branch agencies. The processes for issuing cards are different across the Capitol campus. We are starting to
work with representatives from each major Legislative Branch agency to identify
the requirements that satisfy each agencys or organizations security policies so we
can determine how we might create standard processes. Just within the Senate, we
issue identification and access cards to people from the media, pages, interns, temporary staff, full-time staff, and others. During the 108th Congress, we issued
41,000 cards15,000 to the press. The challenge of tracking and recovering these
cards has been daunting. By undertaking this initiative, we expect to be able to increase the accountability for the cards and the security of the Senate.
Transition to New Congress
This year, we will also face one challenge that we face every other year: the transition to a new Congress. Thirty-three Senators face election this year, and four
Members have announced their retirement, so we will have at least four new Senators next year. The transition includes providing space for newly elected Senators,
and providing the whole range of support they need to set up their offices and start
accomplishing their work for the American people. We provide orientation for newly
elected Senators, their Chiefs of Staff, and their Administrative Managers. We work
to ensure that newly elected Senators learn about the resources available to help
them serve their constituents and accomplish their legislative goals. We also make
sure returning Senators and staff receive up-to-date information about the services
available.
We are engaged in closing down state and Capitol Hill offices of departing Members, equipping the transition office to house Senators-elect from the date of election
until the beginning of the next Congress, moving the newly sworn-in Senators into
their temporary suites, and then moving offices as required during the regular office
move process.
For closing offices, we shut down all communications services, determine which
equipment can be inherited by Members successors, and inventory and remove all
equipment in coordination with the other activities of the office. For new and relocated offices, we establish all communications facilities, acquire and install all office
automation and general office equipment, and ensure that everything works as it
should.
IT Security
In the IT security threat environment, the list of potential threats to our information infrastructure is growing in number and sophistication. Over the next year, we
will meet the challenge of managing a volatile security environment by: (1) expanding the role of the recently established security operations center; (2) optimizing our
current configuration of security controls; (3) improving our collaboration with other
federal agencies in the areas of incident response and situational awareness; (4)
evaluating, testing, and deploying new security control mechanisms; and (5) enhancing communication with IT staff in Member and Committee Offices to give them
timely and usable information in order to improve the security posture of their local
IT systems.

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Information Technology Infrastructure
We will complete the build out of the wireless infrastructure for laptops; for the
Parking, Guide Service, and Capitol Police radio systems; and for the Senate Cloakroom paging systems. We will also aggressively pursue alternative hand-held communications devices and we will ensure that any devices we support will deliver
seamless emergency notifications. Finally, over the next year we will award the telecommunications modernization contract and complete its first phases. This comprehensive upgrade and replacement of our telecommunications systems will enable
the Senate to take advantage of Voice over Internet Protocol and converged voice,
video, and data communications.
Moving Business to the Web and Enterprise Software Initiatives
We will continue our initiatives to reduce paperwork and move business to the
Web by developing the TranSAAct portal to deliver and integrate services and systems and provide two-way Web interaction between customers and service providers. As we move forward on TranSAAct, we are working with Senate customers
to identify and integrate additional requirements. We are also planning for the next
major release of Microsofts operating system, Vista. Deploying this system and integrating it with other applications will require tremendous effort. Building on these
developments, we will work toward integrating systems and applications through a
Web-services architecture that will reduce redundancy and eliminate stove-pipe
systems.
CONCLUSION

We take our responsibilities to the American people and to their elected representatives seriously. The Office of the Sergeant at Arms is like dozens of small
businesses, each with its own primary mission, each with its own measures of success, and each with its own culture. It has a fleet of vehicles that serves Senate
Leadership, delivers goods, and provides emergency transportation. Our Photography Studio records historic events, takes official Senate portraits, provides the
whole range of Capitol photography services, and delivers thousands of pictures
each year. The SAAs printing shop provides layout and design, graphics development, and production of everything from newsletters to floor charts. The Office of
the Sergeant at Arms also operates a page dormitory, a hair salon, and parking lots.
It provides many other services to support the Senate community, including framing, flag packaging and mailing, and intranet services. Each of these businesses requires personnel with different skills and different abilities. One thing that they all
have in common, though, is their commitment to making the Senate run smoothly.
Over the past year, the staff of the SAA has kept the Senate safe, secure, and
operating efficiently. This Committee and the Committee on Rules and Administration have provided active, ongoing support to help us achieve our goals. We thank
you for your support and for the opportunity to present this testimony and respond
to any questions you may have.
APPENDIX AFISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST
ATTACHMENT I
FINANCIAL PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2007
OFFICE OF THE SERGEANT AT ARMSUNITED STATES SENATE

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Amount

Percent Incr/
Decr

General Operations & Maintenance:

Salaries ........................................................................................
Expenses ......................................................................................

$56,700
$65,505

$62,604
$79,211

$5,904
$13,706

10.4
20.9

Total General Operations & Maintenance ...............................

$122,205

$141,815

$19,610

16.0

Mandated Allowances & Allotments .....................................................

Capital Investment ...............................................................................

$55,282
$17,262

$57,757
$19,831

$2,475
$2,569

4.5
14.9

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARYContinued
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Percent Incr/
Decr

Amount

Nondiscretionary Items .........................................................................

$3,951

$4,640

$689

17.4

TOTAL .......................................................................................

$198,700

$224,043

$25,343

12.8

Staffing .................................................................................................

910

944

34

3.7

To ensure that we provide the highest levels and quality of security, support services and equipment, we submit a fiscal year 2007 budget request of $224,043,000,
an increase of $25,343,000 or 12.8 percent compared to fiscal year 2006. The salary
budget request is $62,604,000, an increase of $5,904,000 or 10.4 percent, and the
expense budget request is $161,439,000, an increase of $19,439,000 or 13.7 percent.
The staffing request is 944, an increase of 34 FTEs.
We present our budget in four categories: General Operations and Maintenance
(Salaries and Expenses), Mandated Allowances and Allotments, Capital Investment,
and Nondiscretionary Items.
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is $62,604,000,
an increase of $5,904,000 or 10.4 percent compared to fiscal year 2006. The salary budget increase is due to the addition of 34 FTEs, a COLA, and merit funding. The additional staff will support the Capitol Visitor Center, augment our
security team, expand services, and meet new requirements for the Senate community.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request for existing
and new services is $79,211,000, an increase of $13,706,000 or 20.9 percent
compared to fiscal year 2006. Major factors contributing to the expense budget
increase are emergency preparedness in security operations and planning,
$7,847,000; additional services and locations under the IT support contract,
$1,535,000; telephone system maintenance, $1,097,000; consulting and equipment purchases for the Active Directory Messaging Architecture, $1,024,000;
and maintenance costs related to Enterprise Storage, $585,000.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request is $57,757,000, an increase of $2,475,000 or 4.5 percent compared to fiscal year 2006. This variance
is primarily due to an increase in Member mail system costs, $1,745,000; and
state office security enhancements of $700,000, offset by decreases in office
lease costs.
The capital investment budget request is $19,831,000, an increase of $2,569,000
or 14.9 percent compared to fiscal year 2006. The fiscal year 2007 budget request includes funds for the replacement and upgrade of the telephone system,
$10,475,000; data network engineering costs, $2,345,000; electronic printing and
publication network, $1,800,000; hardware purchases related to the SAN upgrade, $1,750,000; and the Network Upgrade project, $1,646,000.
The nondiscretionary items budget request is $4,640,000, an increase of
$689,000 or 17.4 percent compared to fiscal year 2006. The request funds three
projects that support the Secretary of the Senate: contract maintenance for the
Financial Management Information System (FMIS), $3,703,000; maintenance
and necessary enhancements to the Legislative Information System (LIS),
$840,000; and maintenance and enhancements to the Senate Payroll System,
$97,000.
ATTACHMENT II.FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST BY DEPARTMENT

The following is a summary of the SAA fiscal year 2007 budget request on an organizational basis.
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Capitol Division ....................................................................................

$25,568

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

$35,399

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Amount

$9,831

Percent Incr/
Decr

38.5

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[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Percent Incr/
Decr

Amount

Operations .............................................................................................
Technology Development .......................................................................
IT Support Services ...............................................................................
Staff Offices .........................................................................................

$52,515
$41,153
$66,927
$12,537

$53,558
$47,676
$71,901
$15,509

$1,043
$6,523
$4,974
$2,972

2.0
15.9
7.4
23.7

TOTAL .......................................................................................

$198,700

$224,043

$25,343

12.8

Each departments budget is presented and discussed in detail on the next pages.

CAPITOL DIVISION
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Percent Incr/
Decr

Amount

General Operations & Maintenance:

Salaries ........................................................................................
Expenses ......................................................................................

$14,530
$7,938

$15,908
$15,691

$1,378
$7,753

9.5
97.7

Total General Operations & Maintenance ...............................

$22,468

$31,599

$9,131

40.6

Mandated Allowances & Allotments .....................................................

Capital Investment ...............................................................................
Nondiscretionary Items .........................................................................

$3,100
..................
..................

$3,800
..................
..................

$700
..................
..................

22.6
..................
..................

TOTAL .......................................................................................

$25,568

$35,399

$9,831

38.5

Staffing .................................................................................................

273

278

1.8

The Capitol Division consists of the Executive Office, the Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness, the U.S. Capitol Police Operations
Liaison, Post Office, Recording Studio and Media Galleries.

The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is $15,908,000,

an increase of $1,378,000 or 9.5 percent. The salary budget increase is due to the
addition of five FTEs, a COLA and merit increases, and other adjustments. The Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness requires an additional COOP planning
specialist, and the Post Office will add four mail specialists to handle the opening,
examining, and sampling of commercially delivered packages to the new Senate offsite processing facility.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is $15,691,000,
an increase of $7,753,000 or 97.7 percent, and will primarily will fund security consultants and services required by the Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request for state office security
initiatives is $3,800,000.

OPERATIONS
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Amount

Percent Incr/
Decr

General Operations & Maintenance:

Salaries ......................................................................................
Expenses ....................................................................................

$16,592
$5,971

$18,308
$6,323

$1,716
$352

10.3
5.9

Total General Operations & Maintenance .............................

$22,563

$24,631

$2,068

9.2

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OPERATIONSContinued
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Amount

Percent Incr/
Decr

Mandated Allowances & Allotments ...................................................

Capital Investment .............................................................................
Nondiscretionary Items .......................................................................

$27,332
$2,620
..................

$26,777
$2,150
..................

($555)
($470)
....................

2.0
17.9
..................

TOTAL .....................................................................................

$52,515

$53,558

$1,043

2.0

Staffing ...............................................................................................

302

319

17

5.6

The Operations Division consists of the Central Operations Group (Director/Management, Parking Office, Printing, Graphics and Direct Mail,
Photo Studio, and Hair Care Services), Facilities, and the Office Support Services Group (Director, Customer Support, State Office Liaison, IT
Request Processing and Administrative Services).

The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is $18,308,000,

an increase of $1,716,000 or 10.3 percent. The salary budget increase is due to the
addition of 17 FTEs, an expected 3.5 percent a COLA, and merit increases. Facilities
expects to hire 17 staff to maintain the Senate expansion space in the Capitol Visitor Center.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is $6,323,000,
an increase of $352,000 or 5.9 percent. In Printing, Graphics and Direct Mail, increases in software and equipment maintenance, $185,000, and purchased equipment, $120,000, are offset by a decrease in warehouse rent, $860,000. Facilities furnishings and materials increase $516,000.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request is $26,777,000, a decrease of $555,000 or 2.0 percent. This decrease is due to projected decreases in commercial and federal office expenses.
The capital investment budget request is $2,150,000, a decrease of $470,000 or
17.9 percent. Funding is requested to purchase a new electronic printing and publishing network, $1,800,000, and to replace photo printing equipment and upgrade
software, $250,000.

TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Percent Incr/
Decr

Amount

General Operations & Maintenance:

Salaries ........................................................................................
Expenses ......................................................................................

$11,787
$22,948

$13,127
$23,398

$1,340
$450

11.4
2.0

Total General Operations & Maintenance ...............................

$34,735

$36,525

$1,790

5.2

Mandated Allowances & Allotments .....................................................

Capital Investment ...............................................................................
Nondiscretionary Items .........................................................................

..................
$2,467
$3,951

..................
$6,511
$4,640

..................
$4,044
$689

..................
163.9
17.4

TOTAL .......................................................................................

$41,153

$47,676

$6,523

15.9

Staffing .................................................................................................

134

140

4.5

The Technology Development Services includes the Technology Development Director, Network Engineering and Management, Enterprise IT
Operations, Systems Development Services, Information Systems Security and Internet/Intranet Services.

The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is $13,127,000,

an increase of $1,340,000 or 11.4 percent. The salary budget increase is due to the
addition of six FTEs, a COLA and merit funding for fiscal year 2007. Technology
Development requires six FTEs to support the growing demand on IT Security, to
meet additional requirements for the ACF, and to eliminate of a backlog of development projects.

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The general operations and maintenance expense budget request is $23,398,000,
an increase of $450,000 or 2.0 percent. This increase is due to increased equipment
maintenance and professional services costs in IT Security, $422,000; the purchase
of computer and mainframe equipment and furnishings in Enterprise IT Operations,
$638,000; and hardware and software maintenance for Enterprise Storage,
$585,000, offset by a decrease in support costs for the Senate Messaging Infrastructure, $1,000,000.
The capital investment budget request is $6,511,000, an increase of $4,044,000 or
163.9 percent. Major projects include the SAN Upgrade, $1,750,000; network upgrade in support the Telecom Modernization Plan, $1,550,000; and the fiber optic
migration, $900,000.
The nondiscretionary items budget request is $4,640,000, an increase of $689,000
or 17.4 percent. The request consists of three projects that support the Secretary
of the Senate: contract maintenance for the Financial Management Information System (FMIS), maintenance and necessary enhancements to the Legislative Information System (LIS), and maintenance and enhancements to the Senate Payroll System.

IT SUPPORT SERVICES
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Percent Incr/
Decr

Amount

General Operations & Maintenance:

Salaries ......................................................................................
Expenses ....................................................................................

$5,714
$24,663

$6,260
$27,821

$546
$3,158

9.6
12.8

Total General Operations & Maintenance .............................

$30,377

$34,081

$3,704

12.2

Mandated Allowances & Allotments ...................................................

Capital Investment .............................................................................
Nondiscretionary Items .......................................................................

$24,850
$11,700
..................

$27,180
$10,640
..................

$2,330
($1,060)
....................

9.4
9.1
..................

TOTAL .....................................................................................

$66,927

$71,901

$4,974

7.4

Staffing ...............................................................................................

105

107

1.9

The IT Support Services Department consists of the Director, Office Equipment Services, Telecom Services and Desktop/LAN Support
branches.

The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is $6,260,000, an

increase of $546,000 or 9.6 percent. The salary budget will increase due to the addition of two FTEs, a COLA, and merit funding for fiscal year 2007. The additional
FTEs will support procurement activities and provide advanced technical expertise.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is $27,821,000,
an increase of $3,158,000 or 12.8 percent. The most significant factors contributing
to this increase are telephone system maintenance costs, $1,097,000, and annual escalations in the IT Support Contract, $1,535,000.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request is $27,180,000, an increase of $2,330,000 or 9.4 percent. Major factors contributing to this budget request
are voice and data communications for Washington D.C. and state offices,
$17,395,000; procurement and maintenance of Members constituent mail systems,
$6,000,000; procurement and maintenance of office equipment for Washington D.C.
and state offices, $2,857,000; and Appropriations Analysis and Reporting System,
$500,000.
The capital investment budget request is $10,640,000, a decrease of $1,060,000 or
9.1 percent, and consists primarily of equipment purchases for the replacement of
the Capitol Hill telephone system, $10,475,000.

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STAFF OFFICES
[Dollar amounts in thousands]

Fiscal Year
2006 Budget

Fiscal Year
2007 Request

Fiscal Year 2007 vs. Fiscal

Year 2006
Percent Incr/
Decr

Amount

General Operations & Maintenance:

Salaries ........................................................................................
Expenses ......................................................................................

$8,077
$3,985

$9,001
$5,978

$924
$1,993

11.4
50.0

Total General Operations & Maintenance ...............................

$12,062

$14,979

$2,917

24.2

Mandated Allowances & Allotments .....................................................

Capital Investment ...............................................................................
Nondiscretionary Items .........................................................................

..................
$475
..................

..................
$530
..................

..................
$55
..................

..................
11.6
100.0

TOTAL .......................................................................................

$12,537

$15,509

$2,972

23.7

Staffing .................................................................................................

96

100

4.2

The Staff Offices Division consists of Education and Training, Financial Management, Human Resources, Employee Assistance Program,
Process Management & Innovation, and Special Projects.

The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is $9,001,000, an

increase of $924,000 or 11.4 percent. The salary budget increase is due to the addition of four FTEs, a COLA, and merit funding. Process Management and Innovation
requires two FTEs to oversee the Active Directory Messaging Architecture. Human
Resources and Employee Assistance Program each requests an additional FTE to accommodate increased staff and demand.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is $5,978,000,
an increase of $1,993,000 or 50.0 percent. The bulk of this increase is due to funding
for Process Management and Innovations professional services and consultants in
support of information technology prototypes and innovation research and development.
The capital investment budget request is $530,000, an increase of $55,000 or 11.6
percent, for continuing project support.
STAFFING INCREASES

Senator ALLARD. Well, thank you. I have a few questions that I

feel that we need to ask to fully understand what kind of plan you
are putting together. As we have mentioned, you have requested 34
additional staff. Half of those are for the CVCthey are new jobs.
The other half is for duties and responsibilities outside the Capitol
Visitor Center, and I would like to have an explanation of why you
need those and what functions are driving that additional staff requirement outside the Capitol Visitor Center.
Mr. PICKLE. Okay. Mr. Chairman, if I may, let me give you a
broad answer for those 17 outside the Capitol and then give you
a written response that breaks down each position. I think this will
give you a much more thorough answer.
Senator ALLARD. That would be helpful.
MAIL SAFETY

Mr. PICKLE. Okay. Essentially, the 17 positions outside the CVC

are positions that, for the most part, support or enhance security.
For instance, 4 of those 17 are positions that will go to our new
mail and package facility. As you know, we currently process our
own mail at the Senate Post Office. It will be a state-of-the-art facility that this subcommittee has funded. By all accounts, its one
of the best in the Nation. A vendor currently processes packages,

189
and we are taking over the package screening and delivery process
ourselves. We will use four Federal employees to do it. We believe
the cost savings will be about $200,000 per year. We base this on
what we are currently paying to the vendor, and we also base it
on what we see being done on the House side. I like to brag a little
bit about our staff and what this subcommittee has supported in
that regard. We currently process about 90 percent of the mail volume that the House does. A lot of people think it should be much
more on the House side, but its not. Our volume is 90 percent of
the Houses volume. Yet, we process that mail at almost a $7 million savings per year because we use Senate employees. We think
similar savingsnot as greatwill result from using Senate employees for the packaging process. In addition to those four staff
members, there are other FTEs sprinkled throughout the SAA to
support network applications, technology, as well as security and
preparedness. One of the positions which I do want to highlight for
just a moment is in our Employee Assistance Program. I dont
think people realized how important that program is until we
began to professionalize it here several years ago. Our Employee
Assistance Program is under a lot of demand from the Senate community. As you know, every time we have an incident or a crisis
here, we are overwhelmed with the particular needs of the staff
who work here. This program also helps and benefits each office a
great deal. It helps managers. It helps staff directors. It teaches
staff to deal with employees that may have some problems and
issues. It is a single position, but its a very important position.
And so what I would like to do with all the others, if I may, is give
you a much more detailed breakdown, sir.
[The information follows:]
SERGEANT

AT

ARMS POSITION JUSTIFICATIONFISCAL YEAR 2007

Department: Office of Security & Emergency Preparedness

Branch/Section: Continuity Programs
Position Title: Continuity Of Operations Planning (COOP) Planning Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB10, $67,675$101,508
Essential Duties of Position: The new staff will operationally support the continuity programs existing relocation facilities and those that are coming online or
being planned for fiscal year 2006. The new staff will work from classified or sensitive sites to ensure the Senates operational viability, and will support the State
Office COOP planning efforts that were initiated in fiscal year 2006.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. Some of these duties are being performed now. Current staff is
assigned to support primary contingency facilities within the National Capitol Region and to support Member Offices COOP planning efforts, but this leaves other
facilities unattended with questionable operational status in the event of an emergency. The COOP planning support for Members DC and State office locations is
currently not being adequately supported and this work will overwhelm our current
planning and preparedness capabilities.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If the request is not approved, the level of planning, preparedness, and response
to ensure an effective transition to a continuity of operations situation for Member
Offices, Committees, Senate Offices, and the Senate as a whole will not be adequate.
Not approving this position would limit our ability to support Member and Committee Offices continuity planning efforts as well as our ability to ensure facility
readiness for the Senate as a whole.
Department: Facilities
Branch/Section: Environmental Services
Position Title: Facilities Worker

190
No. of Positions Requested: 14
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB3, $33,824$50,733
Essential Duties of Position: The new facilities day staff will clean corridors, perform stairway maintenance, set up water for special events, and clean up waste.
Throughout the day, the staff will ensure that the area is clean, decontaminated,
and free of all fluid, debris, spots, stains and odor. The staff will assist in moving
furniture, delivering non-furniture items, cleaning public restrooms, setting up for
special events, and removing trash.
The new facilities night staff will clean elevators and stairwells, conduct early
morning room set-ups and break downs, and clean corridors and restrooms. The
staff will also undertake nightly office cleaning and floor care, and will spot clean
fabric wall panels.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are not currently being performed. They will be required upon the opening of the Senate Expansion Space of the CVC.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, we believe that the cost of contracting these
services at the service level the Senate expects would be prohibitive. Capitol Facilities provides a significantly higher level of service than does the AOCs contractor.
Capitol Facilities consistently delivers the high level of service required by the Senate, including an environment that is consistently dust-, debris-, and smudge-free;
restrooms that are stocked, cleaned and sanitized; and floors that are free of dust,
debris, soil and stains.
Department: Facilities
Branch/Section: Environmental Services
Position Title: Lead Facilities Worker
No. of Positions Requested: 2
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB4, $37,581$56,368
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will dedicate 75 percent of their time to
performing the same duties as the Facilities Workers that make up their teams. The
remaining time will be dedicated to inspecting the teams work.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are not currently being performed. They will be required upon the opening of the Senate Expansion Space of the CVC.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, we believe that the cost of contracting these
services at the service level the Senate expects would be prohibitive. Capitol Facilities provides a significantly higher level of service than does the AOCs contractor.
Capitol Facilities consistently delivers the high level of service required by the Senate, including an environment that is consistently dust-, debris-, and smudge-free;
restrooms that are stocked, cleaned and sanitized; and floors that are free of dust,
debris, soil and stains.
Department: Facilities
Branch/Section: Facilities Management
Position Title: Facilities Services Supervisor
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB6, $46,395$69,593
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will assign work, provide performance accountability, and provide leadership to the team leaders and facilities workers. In
addition this staff member will plan work, ensure adherence to safety procedures
and measures, and ensure that staff members comply with Capitol Facilities policies
and procedures.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are not currently being performed. They will be required upon the opening of the Senate Expansion Space of the CVC.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, facilities workers and team leaders will not have
the guidance necessary to meet the cleaning and service needs of the Senate Expansion Space. Customer service and customer service will be affected adversely.
Department: Post Office
Branch/Section: Package Delivery Services
Position Title: Mail Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 3
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB3, $33,824$50,733
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will screen all incoming commercial carrier
package deliveries (e.g., deliveries from UPS, FedEx, DHL, etc.). In addition, these

191
three specialists will process items that are too large for the Congressional Acceptance Site.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are currently being performed by a contractor. The
current service levels provided by the contractor are inadequate and result in late
deliveries, incorrect routings, and damaged, lost, and unprocessed items.
The new positions are requested to enable the Senate Post Office to bring the
processing of packages in house. We expect that this will result in significantly better service. The cost to the Senate is approximately $170,000 per year, but will result in savings in excess of $200,000 annually.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, the Senate will continue to experience inadequate service levels, and it will not realize the $200,000 savings that we anticipate.
The Senate will have to continue contractor support at approximately $470,000 per
year. Costs and savings represent total amounts for the Package Delivery service.
Department: Post Office
Branch/Section: Package Delivery Services
Position Title: Lead Mail Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB4, $37,581$56,368
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will monitor employees processing commercial carrier packages (e.g. FedEx, UPS, DHL, etc.) and ensure that proper screening
procedures are followed at all times.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are currently being performed by a contractor. The
current service levels provided by the contractor are inadequate and result in late
deliveries, incorrect routings, and damaged, lost, and unprocessed items.
The new position is requested to enable the Senate Post Office to bring the processing of packages in house. We expect that this will result in significantly better
service. The projected salary cost for one Lead Mail Specialist is $36,000 in fiscal
year 2007. Cost to the Senate is approximately $50,000 per year, but will result in
savings in excess of $200,000 annually.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, the Senate will continue to experience inadequate service levels, and it will not realize the $200,000 savings that we anticipate.
The Senate will have to continue contractor support at approximately $470,000 per
year. Costs and savings represent total amounts for the Package Delivery service.
Department: Technology Development
Branch/Section: Systems DevelopmentEnterprise Database Support
Position Title: Senior Information Technology Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: Pay Band 10, $67,675
$101,508
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will administer Windows System and SQL
Server Databases.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. Duties are currently being performed by one individual in the Enterprise Database Support group. Significant growth in demand for services and advanced technology implementations of this software have created a critical need for
additional resources. The same person who performs these duties also ensures continuous systems availability and performs disaster recovery duties. Having only one
person with the expertise and daily involvement with the underlying architecture
that supports critical Senate services, such as Senate.gov and the ADMA Blackberry
backend database, puts the Senate in a precarious position.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, services will continue to be supported, but not
as rapidly as the demand warrants. In addition, Senate services may be severely
affected by lack of support if our single existing resource is unavailable.
Department: Technology Development
Branch/Section: Enterprise IT OperationsEnterprise Ops
Position Title: Information Technology Operations Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 3
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB6, $46,395$69,593
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will manage current production systems
that are running at the ACF, such as the enterprise SILO tape backup system, systems failed over to the ACF, and various facility related tasks. Duties also include

192
providing first response to problems during emergencies, backing up the primary facility support duties for the 24 X 7 Blackberry server, and monitoring and administering the Senates email system and payroll applications.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are being performed by one thinly staffed shift at the
ACF five days per week. Some of the duties are being conducted remotely and some
by rotating Primary Computing Facility staff from Postal Square. However, significant gaps exist.
With the continued evolution of the systems running from the ACF there is a
need to fully support the ACF with multiple shifts. The ACF is now running key
services, such as all enterprise backups of critical applications. Transitioning into
a multi-shift operation, similar to the operation of the primary computing facility,
is needed to support the continued expansion of workload, and to maintain a continuously efficient operation.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, we run the risk of delaying resolution of system
problems that arise outside of normal business hours. We also run the risk of delaying response time in the case of an emergency, and directly affecting business continuity.
Department: Technology Development
Branch/Section: IT Security
Position Title: Senior Information Security Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 2
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB10, $67,675$101,508
Essential Duties of Position: The new staff would collect and analyze data in the
Security Operations Center and resolve or eliminate anomalies/security events; assist Member offices on network security issues; monitor SAA enterprise systems; improve external contact in order to stay abreast of rapidly changing computer network attack profiles; and make full use of new enterprise-wide security technologies
deployed this year that allow us to perform activities that were formerly performed
by contractors. Staff also will provide support and analysis associated with the new
capabilities in Symantec client software (firewall, anti-spyware/adware, etc.).
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. IT Security currently has staff that performs most of the essential
duties described, but the staff will not be able to meet the additional demands it
anticipates. Due to the number of new security initiatives that are the result of increasing threats, the overall workload of the staff continues to grow. Security issues
and systems are increasingly complex, requiring more time and resources for satisfactory resolution and adequate backup.
Department: IT Support Services
Branch/Section: Office Equipment ServicesOrder Services
Position Title: Senior Procurement & Supplies Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB 5, $41,756$62,635
Essential Duties of Position: New staff will handle wireless device issues including
provisioning telecommunications/wireless services, providing advanced troubleshooting for major vendors and systems, using a comprehensive understanding of
multiple product lines and service offerings to provide rate and service plan analysis
for customers, conducting complete hot swaps, modifying accounts, and providing
billing support.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are currently being performed by SAA staff. Senate
wireless equipment needs have increased dramatically over the past two years and
the trend is continuing. Although staffing levels have remained the same, Senate
staff expects wireless equipment to be available immediately. Current resources
make it extremely difficult to stay abreast of the ordering demands and the programming and tracking of wireless equipment.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, the SAA will not be able to fully meet the Senates service level expectations. We think that the least costly approach is through
hiring an additional staff member as opposed to contracting for this support. We do
not believe that reduced service levels are acceptable to the Senate.
The pay salary range will be $41,756 to $62,635. When a contractor was approached about the possibility of providing one person to do only some of the duties
discussed above, their cost estimate was $150,000 to $175,000 per year.
Department: IT Support Services

193
Branch/Section: Desktop/LAN SupportCMS Coordination
Position Title: Principal Information Technology Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB 11 Pay Range: $73,086
$109,628
Essential Duties of Position: This position will evaluate and guide vendor development efforts in the areas of Web development, electronic messaging, and electronic
document management; lead projects, especially those related to constituent e-mail
processing; be a technical resource for other CMS Coordination staff; and perform
liaison work with other SAA departments.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These tasks are currently being performed by contract staff that
has been engaged to provide these capabilities. The new position is being requested
in order to continue to have access to this level of experience and expertise.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: If this request is not approved, the CMS Coordination group will continue to
incur the higher cost of contracting out for this position. The CMS Coordination
group supports the existing model for correspondence management, but in order to
adapt to the changes that will result from the introduction of new electronic communications capabilities in Senate offices and an anticipated increase in the number
of CSS vendors, we need additional staff. The new staff must have in-depth expertise in Web form development, electronic messaging, and electronic document management. Because CSS vendors will soon operate within a different, more stringent
contract structure, existing staffs time will be fully committed to ensuring contract
compliance. In addition, existing staff will oversee the e-Newsletter vendor contracts. These activities will require all of the existing CMS Coordination resources.
The pay range for the new position is $73,086$109,628. The position is currently
contracted out at $205,577 per year.
Department: Process Management & Innovation
Branch/Section: IT Research & DeploymentTechnology Assessment
Position Title: Principal Information Technology Specialist
No. of Positions Requested: 2
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB11, $73,086$109,628
Essential Duties of Position: The new positions will be responsible for all aspects
of the Active Directory & Messaging Architect (ADMA) design. All design changes,
security updates, migration processes, software updates, product upgrades, and addin products, whether part of the core system or peripherally integrated, must go
through a rigorous design, testing, pilot, and implementation process.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are currently being performed by on-site contractor
staff at an annual cost of approximately $600,000. Replacing these contractors with
staff will create a significant dollar savings for the Senate and will allow for more
flexibility in work assignments. These duties will be ongoing for many years to come
and the recurring annual dollar savings will be over $300,000.
An additional benefit is continuity of institutional knowledge. On-site contractors
are subject to periodic personnel changes. When contractors leave, all of the Senatespecific technical and business institutional knowledge leaves with them and there
is a significant learning curve and negative service impact associated with the replacement of staff. This situation will be avoided by using permanent Senate staff.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: The current cost of on-site contractors performing these duties is approximately
$600,000 per year. The cost of these FTEs will easily be less than $300,000 resulting
in at least a $300,000 savings.
Department: Staff Offices
Branch/Section: Human Resources
Position Title: Human Resources Technician
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB5, $41,756$62,635
Essential Duties of Position: The new staff will be responsible for scanning personnel records into the personnel records management system, which will be implemented during fiscal year 2006. This staff member also will provide support to the
HR Administrators in carrying out their labor relations responsibilities with respect
to the unions representing Capitol Facilities and Recording Studio employees.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. These duties are not being performed now. A vendor has been chosen for the records management system and we are working on an implementation
plan. Negotiations on Collective Bargaining Agreements are currently underway

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with the two unions representing the Capitol Facilities and Recording Studio employees.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: It would be impossible for the current HR Technician to assume this new workload. If this position is not approved, HR Administrators will be required to assume
these lower-level responsibilities and the level of service that will be provided to clients will be adversely affected. It will take longer to classify positions, it will take
longer to fill positions, training activities will be provided less frequently, availability to consult with clients will be affected, etc. In order to accomplish essential
functions and to meet critical deadlines, we might be required to pay overtime to
non-exempt staff and to provide compensatory time to other staff.
Department: Staff Offices
Branch/Section: Employee Assistance Program
Position Title: EAP Counselor
No. of Positions Requested: 1
Pay Band Pay Band & Salary Range: Salary Range: PB9, $62,260$93,388
Essential Duties of Position: The new staff will provide comprehensive mental
health assessment, referral, and follow-up services in the workplace and provide
counseling and short-term therapy for staff and family members on a wide range
of sensitive and complex matters. Staff will also counsel supervisors in the recognition and referral of employees with problems and promote good mental health practices through articles, training programs, publications, Web page, etc.
Are these duties being performed now? If yes, state by whom and why a new position is requested. The present EAP (staff of two) is trying to cover these duties.
If this request is not approved, what will be the service or cost impact on the Senate: With a reduction in proactive outreach to troubled employees there will be higher turnover, an impact on moral, and, in some cases, an impact on employee productivity.
STAFFING INCREASE

Senator ALLARD. I want to follow up on that with some other

questions. If we are not able to provide the increases that you
asked for, would we get a decrease in services?
Mr. PICKLE. I think its a combination of the two. And the best
analogy I can usein 1997, I believe it was, or 1998, there was a
conscious effort on the part of the Sergeant at Arms to reduce
FTEs. There was about a 50 FTE reduction that year. By all accounts, from people who are still here and the people we deal with,
after the reduction, the services that we provided did not meet expectations. September 11 exacerbated the problem. It created additional needs. It created a need for additional staff and additional
technologies. We will keep plugging away and do the very best job,
and that will be our goal, but I think there will be some diminishing of services.
Senator ALLARD. Well, were looking at the chart here on your
FTE budget for the Sergeant at Arms, and I see where we had a
decrease in personnel from 2000 to 2001.
Mr. PICKLE. Yes.
Senator ALLARD. And then from there, we have a regular steep
climb
Mr. PICKLE. Yes.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. In personnel. And so, I would like
to get back to the 18 that you requested last year.
Mr. PICKLE. Yes.
Senator ALLARD. Can you tell us the status of those new hires?
Mr. PICKLE. Out of the 18 positions you gave us last year, 12
have been filled. The other six have been announced and posted.
Two of those six had job offers made to them, but they withdrew
their acceptance and did not come onboard. So, we still have six of

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those which have been posted but not filled. Our dilemma is that
some of these jobs are of such significance and importance to us
that we dont wantespecially in the technology areato take people just to fill the slot. We are looking for the very best. So we may
penalize ourselves somewhat by not hiring right away, but I think
thats the best course of action.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. We want to look at that closely.
Mr. PICKLE. I understand.
Senator ALLARD. You have four there that havent been filled for
various reasons, and I assume that that request you made is in addition to the 18 that we provided for last year.
Mr. PICKLE. Yes, the 34 are in addition. Yes, sir.
CUSTODIAL WORKERS FOR THE SENATE CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER
EXPANSION SPACE

Senator ALLARD. Now, there are 17 personnel you have included

that are supposed to be for cleaning and maintaining the expansion
space in the Capitol Visitor Center. The Architect of the Capitol,
if you have noticed his budget, has included $1.5 million for a custodial contract for the entire Capitol Visitor Center. So, it looks
from our point of view as though there has been a double accounting here. Doesnt it make sense to let AOC contract out for this requirement?
Mr. PICKLE. You know, I think in a perfect world, it makes sense
that we have one organization do everything. It just makes sense.
The only reason I believe we have a Capitol facilities division that
does maintenance, is that the Senate was a little unhappy with
some of the contract work done years ago. It was a decision made
by whomever was in charge at that time that the maintenance
functions be put under the Senate, and thats why we have a Capitol facilities division that does maintenance and cleaning on the
Senate side of the Capitol. I dont have any strong feelings on it
except to say that its usually better when you have people who are
working around the Senate and sensitive information and documents, its better to have people who work for you, who you have
some control over. You have a much more stable workforce. Now,
whether this is an in-house workforce under the Architect or under
us, I really dont care. I just think that we need to get the best people we can.
Senator ALLARD. It might be that we have to try a contractor. If
it doesnt work out, we could always go back
Mr. PICKLE. Sure.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. The other route.
Mr. PICKLE. Sure.
Senator ALLARD. But its something well look at, at least.
Mr. PICKLE. Mr. Chairman, you know, I think whatthe way we
envisioned thatand its pretty simplistic. We currently maintain
the Senate wing of the Capitol. What we are going to have in the
CVC is an expansion of the Senate wing. So, we were just going
to enlarge our workforce to cover that. But again, whatever makes
economic sense and is more efficient, we are all for.

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SECURITY AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

Senator ALLARD. The budget for the security and emergency preparedness has grown from $4 million in 2002 to $8.5 million in fiscal year 2006. And theres another large increase were looking at
for this year
Mr. PICKLE. Yes.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. A total of $18 million. Why are we
looking at an increase of this magnitude, and can we begin to expect the budget to begin to level out instead of seeing these large
double-digit increases?
Mr. PICKLE. It is a large increase at first blush. But I think that
much of what we have in the area of security has been funded
since 2002 in part by the Emergency Response Fund (ERF) as well
as reprogramming that this subcommittee has allowed us to do and
provided for us. The ERF funds have decreased. We now have
items that need to be funded on an annual basis, and the supplemental is no longer available. These items have a life cycle to
them. There are other items which are services and outsourced
services that we provide here on the Hilland these are all new
services since 20012002 for the most part and to over 450 State
offices. So, the job has increased enormously. I would like to say
there is a moderation, but in all honesty, I dont see how its going
to moderate much. I think once we have a base, we will try to live
within that base, and obviously, we will live within what we are
given. But we simply meet the demands of the Senate, and what
we are
Senator ALLARD. Have you looked at what funding we have
picked up in ongoing programs and emergency funding andhow
many years out we may be looking at before we can stabilize our
base, assuming that we dont have any more emergency appropriations?
Mr. PICKLE. I have not personally, but we will get an answer for
you on that.
Senator ALLARD. I think that would be helpful to the committee
to understand what is happening in that area.
Mr. PICKLE. Well do it.
TELEPHONE SYSTEM REPLACEMENT

Senator ALLARD. Can you give me an update on the status of the

telephone system replacement and whats happening there?
Mr. PICKLE. Last year, this subcommittee provided about $10.5
million for the telecommunications modernization plan. This year,
we are asking for another $10.5 million. We are near the completion of our RFP, or request for proposal, that will go out to the different vendors in the communications industry. We are hoping to
start right away on making some of the changes here, modernization changes. As you know, its a lot of money. I think you asked
me the question last year, will we spend all $10 million in the one
fiscal year. My answer was probably not. And we were absolutely
right; we havent spent it all. Do we need to do it? We do. The current telephone system is 20 years old. So, and in the past 20 years,
technology has changed tremendously. The industry is going toward a converged technology where you have a convergence of dig-

197
ital, video, and voice data. We need to do things such as replace
switches, replace handsetsall the handsetswe need to make
sure that our voice mail works, that all of the different wireless devices we have, whether they are Blackberry or cell phones or
pagers, can be integrated. Its a big job, and it will take some time.
Senator ALLARD. Yes, and there are some changing technologies.
Voice over Internet Protocol
Mr. PICKLE. Yes.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. Has the potential to save a lot of
money, but that technology has to be worked out. There are some
issues as to the domain that have to be worked out before we get
those kinds of things, but it means things are getting more competitive. And hopefully, we can hold down costs.
Mr. PICKLE. Well, they certainly are, and we fully believe that
the bids that we get will include Voice over Internet protocols. We
know that the phone industry, the telecommunications industry,
believes thats where we are going with telephony.
Senator ALLARD. Yes. Do you still expect the cost to total close
to $20 million when were all done?
Mr. PICKLE. To my understanding, approximately $20 million.
Senator ALLARD. Okay, and I am assuming that you are expecting an improvement in service to the end users?
Mr. PICKLE. Absolutely, yesmy CIO is going to guarantee it.
MAIL PROCESSING FACILITY

Senator ALLARD. Im glad theyre here to hear that. Okay, lets

talk a little bit about the mail processing facility. Whats the status
of this facility, and what are your total cost projections there?
Mr. PICKLE. The mail facilityI believe our total cost is $14.9
million, some of which has come from the supplemental. We hope
to have the mail facility completed in the near future. Were going
to take one of our remote mail facilities, and move it to another facility here, a little west and north of us. And at the mail facility,
we are going to be able to do the mail processing and screening,
as well as the package delivery and screening. So, it will be one
consolidated location. And were within budget, and were meeting
the milestones there.
VENDOR DELIVERIES

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now, following up on this, the one part

of it is the process, and the other one is the delivery here to the
Capitol
Mr. PICKLE. Yes.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. And youre planning on implementing, on a pilot basis, a new method of transferring deliveries
(other than mail) to the Capitol. Could you tell me a little bit about
the status of that pilot project?
Mr. PICKLE. Yes. Currently the Capitol Police have a remote site.
They had a permanent site, but they have been forced to move for
various reasons, and they are at an interim site now. Essentially
what takes place there is many of the goods which are destined for
the Capitol are delivered there, theyre examined or screened, and
then they are transported here to the Capitol. I dont want to get
into much more than that if you dont mind. We are revalidating

198
our requirements. We are working closely with the Architect and
the House and also having discussions with the Library of Congress. What we are proposing to do is create a new transfer model.
And in very simple terms, what it will do is it will allow us to receive goods and perishables and other items at a remote site. These
items will be offloaded from vendors trucks. They will be screened
and examined, and declared safe. They will be put on Government
trucks and delivered here to the Capitol. There are several advantages to this. First of all, we reduce dramatically the number of
trucks you see here on the campus, and thats a big security issue.
We also have items delivered by trusted employees, Federal employees who have been vetted and had background checks conducted on them. And third, it should save us in damaged goods,
late goods and perishables, and lost goods.
Senator ALLARD. Ultimately, that could lead to us having our
own truck fleet here on the Capitol.
Mr. PICKLE. It wouldyes, but at a very small level. I would
compare it to something you see at other agencies such as the
State Department, the White House, or the CIA, very similar. Its
a very cost-effective process, I understand, from looking at these
programs.
STRATEGIC PLANNING

Senator ALLARD. Now, in your opening comments, you talked

about trying to meet our interests as far as setting down goals and
objectives and meeting those. Is this what you refer to as your strategic plan?
Mr. PICKLE. Strategic plan, yes it is.
Senator ALLARD. When will you have that available?
Mr. PICKLE. We should have thatIm going to look over my
shoulderin a month. I got the right answer, yes.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Well, well look forward to having it in
a month.
Mr. PICKLE. Okay, great. Thank you.
Senator ALLARD. Well, we do look forward to seeing what you
have put together there.
Mr. PICKLE. Thank you.
Senator ALLARD. I dont believe we have any more questions. I
want to thank you for your service.
Mr. PICKLE. Thank you very much.
Senator ALLARD. I believe you are going to be here for the next
panel as well.
Mr. PICKLE. Yes, sir, the next couple, I think.
Senator ALLARD. So, were not going to let you off too easy
here
Mr. PICKLE. Okay.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. This morning.
Mr. PICKLE. Thank you, sir.

U.S. CAPITOL POLICE BOARD

STATEMENT OF HON. WILSON LIVINGOOD, CHAIRMAN, CAPITOL POLICE BOARD AND CAPITOL GUIDE SERVICE
ACCOMPANIED BY:
HON. WILLIAM H. PICKLE, SERGEANT AT ARMS AND DOORKEEPER
HON. ALAN HANTMAN, ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL, FAIA
CHRIS McGAFFIN, ACTING CHIEF OF POLICE
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Senator ALLARD. So now well move to the next panel. We have

before us now the Capitol Police Board. I want to thank all of you
for your service, and were expecting testimony from Mr. Livingood
and Acting Chief McGaffin. Mr. Livingood.
Mr. LIVINGOOD. Yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Youll go first, and then well call on Acting
Chief McGaffin.
STATEMENT OF WILSON LIVINGOOD

Mr. LIVINGOOD. Good morning, Mr. Chairman.

I am honored to appear before you today to discuss the U.S. Capitol Police fiscal year 2007 budget request. With me today are the
members of the Capitol Police BoardBill Pickle, Alan Hantman,
and also with us today is the Acting Chief of Police, Chris
McGaffin.
Before I begin, Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the subcommittee for their ongoing support of the men and women of the
U.S. Capitol Police. Your commitment to their continued and diligent efforts to develop better security operations, response forces,
and law enforcement capabilities has significantly contributed to
providing a safe and secure environment for Members of Congress,
staff, constituents, and the general public.
The Capitol Police Board appreciates the opportunity to present
and discuss the issues and challenges behind the Capitol Police fiscal year 2007 budget request. The security challenge confronting
the U.S. Capitol Police today remains constant and complex. However, it is a challenge the department successfully manages each
day of the year.
The Capitol Police Board is acutely aware of the need for fiscal
restraint. To address the absolute requirement for fiscal restraint,
we work on a regular basis with the administrative and financial
team of the Capitol Police in the exercise of appropriate financial
management in all areas and divisions of the department. In addition, we have been judicious in the new initiatives we included in
our request. The goal is methodical and consistent fiscal management.
In keeping with prior conference committee directives, good management of our core process, and maximum utilization of our work(199)

200
force, the Capitol Police has made a concerted effort to contract out
activities that would benefit from outsourcing. Our fiscal year 2007
budget submission includes proposals for continuing funding for
these outsourced activities as well as proposals for new outsourced
activities. This will allow the U.S. Capitol Police to more fully concentrate on its core security mission.
It is that core mission for which I want to offer my thanks to the
men and women of the U.S. Capitol Police. They coordinate the
people, organizations, and resources necessary to respond to a variety of threats we face today. It is an extremely difficult job to manage a legislative complex completely open to the public while at the
same time ensuring the safety of the Congress, staff, and visitors
against increased threats. It is a job the U.S. Capitol Police perform with skill and excellence everyday.
The men and women of the Capitol Police have the Boards greatest respect. We speak to them every day, and we listen to them.
Each one considers it an honor to protect, serve, and welcome our
citizens and people from around the world to our Nations Capital
who come to participate in the legislative process, to witness democracy in action, and partake in the history of this unique place.
ACCOLADE TO DEPARTING CHIEF GAINER

Today is Chief Gainers final day with the U.S. Capitol Police. I
know I speak for all the members of the Capitol Police Board when
I extend my deepest thanks to him for his services to the Capitol
Police department and to the Congress. Chief Gainer is first and
always a cops cop. Through his leadership, the capabilities of the
department have been greatly enhanced. Every person who works
here or visits here is a beneficiary of his hard work, dedication, and
professionalism. We wish him well and the very best as he begins
the next phase in his career.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

WILSON LIVINGOOD

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, I am honored to appear before you
today to discuss the U.S. Capitol Police fiscal year 2007 budget request. With me
today are the members of the Capitol Police Board, William Pickle, Senate Sergeant
at Arms, and Alan Hantman, Architect of the Capitol. Christopher McGaffin, the
Acting Chief of Police is also with us.
Before I begin Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the committee for their ongoing support of the men and women of the U.S. Capitol Police. Your commitment to
their continued and diligent efforts to develop better security operations, response
forces and law enforcement capabilities, has significantly contributed to providing
a safe and secure environment for Members of Congress, staff, and the general public.
The Capitol Police Board appreciates this opportunity to present and discuss the
issues and challenges behind the U.S. Capitol Police fiscal year 2007 budget request.
The security challenge confronting the U.S. Capitol Police today remains constant
and complex. However, it is a challenge that the Department successfully manages
each day of the year.
The Capitol Police Board is acutely aware of the need for fiscal restraint. To address the absolute requirement for fiscal restraint, we work on a regular basis with
the administrative and financial team of the Capitol Police in the exercise of appropriate financial management in all areas and divisions of the Department. In addition, we have been judicious in the new initiatives we included in our request. The
goal is methodical and consistent fiscal management.
In keeping with prior conference Committee directives, good management of our
core process and maximum utilization of our workforce, the U.S. Capitol Police has

201
made a concerted effort to contract out activities that would benefit from
outsourcing. Our fiscal year 2007 budget submission includes proposals for continuing funding for these outsourced activities as well as proposals for new
outsourced activities. This will allow the U.S. Capitol Police to more fully concentrate on its core security mission.
It is that core mission for which I want to offer my thanks to the men and women
of the U.S. Capitol Police. They coordinate the people, organizations, and resources
necessary to respond to the variety of threats we face today. It is an extremely difficult job to maintain a legislative complex completely open to the public, while at
the same time ensuring the safety of the Congress, staff, and visitors against increased dangers. It is a job performed with skill.
The men and women of the Capitol Police have my greatest respect. I speak to
them every day, and I listen to them. Each one considers it an honor to protect,
serve, and welcome our citizens and people from around the world to our Nations
Capitolwho come to participate in the legislative processes, to witness democracy
in action, and partake in the history of this unique place.
Mr. Chairman, on behalf of the Capitol Police Board, I would like to thank you
for this opportunity to appear before you today, and for your consideration of this
budget request.
I would now like to introduce Acting Chief McGaffin who will present the Capitol
Polices fiscal year 2007 Budget in more detail.

Senator ALLARD. Well, thank you for your statement. And now,
well go to Acting Chief McGaffin.
STATEMENT OF CHRISTOPHER MC GAFFIN

Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Mr. Chairman, Id like to tell you also

that its an honor to appear before this subcommittee today with
the Capitol Police Board and to represent the United States Capitol
Police in this hearing. We are here to present our fiscal year budget for 2007, but I am also here to thank you, the Senate and this
subcommittee for all the support that its given us over the years.
Ill finish 34 years of service to the United States Capitol Police
and to the Congress this July, and I have watched this police department grow and professionalize over these several decades significantly because of the support of Members of Congress and the
United States Senate like yourself, sir. And if I can take this moment to thank you personally for all that you have done for this
police department, the men and women of this police department
those who are still here serving with me and those who have retired over the last several decades, Id like to do that as well. I
have submitted remarks and my testimony for the record, and I am
very much looking forward to answering questions you may pose
today.
Senator ALLARD. Well make those remarks part of the record.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

CHRISTOPHER MCGAFFIN

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to
appear before the Appropriations Committee today to discuss the United States
Capitol Police fiscal year 2007 budget request. The United States Capitol Police
maintains the honor of protecting the Congress, its legislative process, as well as
staff and visitors from harm. We protect and secure Congress so it can fulfill its constitutional responsibilities in a safe and open environment. As the foremost symbol
of American representative democracy, Congressional operations are a highly visible
target for individuals and organizations intent on causing harm to the United States
and disrupting the legislative processes of our government. It is the duty of the men
and women of the Capitol Police to do all in our power to prevent these acts and,
if such acts, should occur, to respond appropriately to ensure the safety and well
being of our stakeholders.

202
The employees of the Unites States Capitol Police are dedicated to their work and
thus we as a team have had significant accomplishments in the past year, including:
Greeted and screened over 8.7 million staff and visitors throughout the Capitol
Complex and screened over 59,500 people for three holiday events; conducted
over 17,000 canine explosive detection sweeps; coordinated over 3,300 special
events and dignitary visits; screened over 85,000 vehicles and 72,000 individuals at the Capitol Visitors Center as work proceeded uninterrupted; screened
over 574,000 vehicles by the TIGER Team; conducted 136 physical security assessments; and performed 521 electronic countermeasures assessments as well
as other protective functions.
Gained re-accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA). This repeated, independent, outside validation of
our preparation and compliance with national standards clearly affirms our
Strategic Plan, strength of policies, training, operational readiness and overall
professionalism and indicates that the USCP has achieved a level of excellence
and has internalized positive change.
Implemented a new financial management system in 12 months, on time and
within budget, for the first time in the history of the Department.
Developed a strategy and identified requirements and business processes for the
implementation of the Asset Management System which will bring greater accountability and control over assets within the Department, as well as,
launched the first steps to align the Departments internal controls with government-wide standards.
In the ever-changing threat environment, the U.S. Capitol Police accomplishes its
mission through varied, and complementary functions to provide round the clock
protection to Congress. In an effort to maintain the flexibility of Department operations and maintain operational readiness, the USCP over the past several years,
with the support of Congress, has made significant investments in human capital
and Department infrastructure. This has been accomplished by augmenting our intelligence capabilities and coordination among the intelligence community, hardening our physical security and counter surveillance capabilities, automating antiquated security and administrative support systems, enhancing our detection and
response capabilities for explosive devices as well as chemical and biological agents,
and augmenting our incident command and emergency response and notification
systems. Each of these and their related activities has come with high resource requirements for maintenance in order to ensure that our systems are operational 24/
7. The majority of these infrastructure investments were funded with emergency,
supplemental or reprogrammed prior year funding and now require annual, ongoing operational maintenance and life cycle replacement.
Our fiscal year 2007 budget request of $295.1 million represents an increase of
$48.1 million or 19.5 percent over the enacted amount for fiscal year 2006, adjusted
for rescissions. This includes an increase of $31.4 million for personnel costs and
$16.7 million for non-personnel costs. However, when the $10 million from the noyear reprogramming of funds, approved by your Committee, was used to support fiscal year 2006 operational requirements, is taken into consideration the requested
increase is $38.1 million or 14.8 percent.
The Congress has made the commitment through resources and policy support to
create a formidable Police Department with diverse capabilities designed to deter
or respond to any threat to the Capitol Complex. Over the last 5 years, the Department has grown in human capital, security infrastructure, command and control
and, security and law enforcement capability. The Department has a tremendous
base of capabilities, which requires substantial resources to maintain. The intent of
this budget request is to address targeted manpower needs and the annual
sustainment of the Departments capabilities, which have been sourced through a
variety of means. From a manpower perspective, the Department is continually reviewing its operational concept to determine the most effective manner in which to
conduct operations. The intent of this effort is to be as effective and efficient as possible.
New initiatives in our fiscal year 2007 budget request include additional personnel resources for both sworn and civilian; outsourcing background and polygraph
functions in Human Resources, Information Systems maintenance and replacement
systems, operating costs for the Office of Inspector General as well as the new Office
of Professional Responsibility; new costs for activities acquired from other agencies
such as maintenance of the radio communications systems transferred from the Senate and certain security equipment maintenance from the Department of Defense.
The following represents a more detailed look at the USCP fiscal year 2007 request.

203
Personnel.The fiscal year request for salaries of $246,700,000 supports the current authorized FTE levels, as well as, an additional request of 91 new officer FTEs
for critical operational requirements, 10 additional FTEs for Library of Congress
(LOC) attrition and seven new civilian support positions. With the new officers, the
sworn FTE level is 1,759. The revised civilian FTE level is 421 for a total Department FTE count of 2,180. Included in the personnel budget is a request for overtime. Staffing levels are driven by security needs and augmented by overtime to
meet operational requirements. The 494,700 hours requested consist of 449,300
hours for sworn and 45,400 hours for civilians. The $28.1 million request is based
on estimated overtime posting and coverage requirements and approximate costs for
sworn manpower shortage, late sessions of Congress, Special events, security alerts,
arrests and court time and a small amount of civilian overtime requirements.
Non-Personnel.The fiscal year request for non-personnel items is $48,383,000.
The following highlights the majority of the non-personnel request for the USCP.
$16,900,000 is for Physical Security.This includes contractual support for
physical security maintenance and support projects such as comprehensive preventive maintenance to support the maintenance, repair and preventive maintenance of the security systems on the Capitol Complex on a 24/7 basis. Included
are security installation support, security network, and specialized security
equipment; the camera system, vehicle barriers, and the annunciators; maintenance of security equipment such as current CCTV equipment, Digital Video
Recorder, metal detectors and X-ray packages; Life Cycle Replacement of equipment such as Duress Alarms for Members and Committees; Card Access and
Intrusion Alarms.
$11,232,000 is for Information and Communication.This includes maintenance, repair, licensing and support of new and existing systems such as engineering professional services and radio systems contract support, annual contracts supporting Blackberry and Nextel devices and fit out of the radio van.
Information Systems modernization Phase III includes systems such as the
Asset Management System, Case Management system and Web portal system;
Lifecycle replacement for such items as Personal Computers due to be replaced,
radio support, Nextels, Verizon phones, purchase and refreshment of Police Radios.
$4,318,000 is for Protective Services.This will provide appropriate travel related funding for the Dignitary Protection Division (DPD) to ensure the safety
and security of the Congressional Leadership and other Congressional
Protectees. The funding for the last 3 years has required reprogramming each
year to meet costs. Travel increases are related to fuel costs, rental cars and
hotel costs. External training is requested for protective operations.
$2,916,000 is for Human Resource Management.This provides for contractual
services for Human Resources Management such as the National Finance Center for payroll administration; AVUE, which is the HR Management system;
Time and Attendance System Programming and employee training (Workbrain
system) and the outsourcing of 6 sworn staff for the Background check and polygraph function. This will free up the 6 sworn officers to be put back in to the
field and will offset the number of new positions required for the CVC. This request also includes $400,000 for tuition reimbursement for USCP employees.
$2,731,000 is for Financial Management and Accountability.This includes contractual support for the Office of Financial Management including Audit and
Review Services, Outsourcing contract support and a cross servicing agreement
for the financial management system. This line item also includes funding for
agency wide projects such as copier maintenance, vehicle fuel and tort claims.
$2,664,000 is for Logistic Support.This includes funding for refreshment of
uniforms, purchase of new uniforms for new recruits and other officers such as
K9 and CERT officers. Funding is also requested for maintenance and repair
of the Police vehicle fleet.
$786,000 Hazardous Incident Response.This represents replacement of a bomb
suit for hazardous devices. Also includes maintenance for such items as radiological and biological detectors and hazardous material equipment, life cycle replacement and purchase of required equipment and supplies for the hazardous
material response team to comply with OSHA and other safety standards.
In keeping with prior Conference Committee directives, good management of our
core processes and maximum utilization of our workforce, the USCP has made concerted efforts to contract out activities that are conducive to outsourcing. Our fiscal
year 2007 budget submission includes our proposals for continuing funding for these
outsourced activities as well as proposals for new outsourced activities, allowing the
USCP to concentrate on its expertise. The 2007 request includes outsourcing services in the amount of $20.4 million, which includes information technology, physical

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security systems and maintenance, administration, background and polygraph services, veterinarian services, security control operators, financial asset management
system, accounts payable, and installation of equipment.
The U.S. Capitol is still faced with numerous threats, including a vehicle-borne
explosive attack, terrorist-controlled aircraft attack, armed attacks on the Capitol
Complex, suicide bombers or positioned explosive attacks, chemical, biological and/
or radiological attacks and attacks on Members and staff as well as ordinary crime.
To accomplish this mission, the Department will continue to work diligently to enhance its intelligence capabilities and provide a professional 21st Century workforce
capable of performing a myriad of security and law enforcement duties, supported
by state of the art technology to prevent and detect potential threats and effectively
respond to and control incidents. With the help of Congress and the Capitol Police
Board, the Department will continue developing professional administrative capabilities based on sound business and best practices, while raising the caliber and
capability of its sworn and civilian personnel.
The United States Capitol Police must maintain the ability to be prepared for any
situation and the attainment of that goal depends, in part, on having the right people, the right strength and the right numbers, organized into an effective and flexible blend of capabilities and skills. The Department continues to prepare and train
officers by holding Department-wide intelligence briefings when significant or critical information is gathered; disseminating intelligence and tactical information in
daily roll-calls and conducting field and table-top exercises in efforts to enable our
officers to have the tools necessary to do their jobs. Additionally, the Departments
officials routinely participate in a wide-range of tabletop exercises with top experts
in federal, state and local law enforcement.
As Acting Chief of the Capitol Police, I take great pride in the many years of service this Department has provided to the Congress. Building on that legacy, we at
the USCP look forward to continuing to safeguard the Congress, staff, and visitors
to the Capitol Complex during these challenging times. In addition, we look forward
to working with the Congress and particularly this Committee.
I thank you for the opportunity to appear here today and am ready to address
any questions you may have.
ACCOLADE FOR U.S. CAPITOL POLICE DEPARTMENT

Senator ALLARD. Did you give your full statement, Mr.

Livingood?
Mr. LIVINGOOD. Its been submitted for the record, sir.
Senator ALLARD. I would just like to say like so many Members,
I visit the Capitol at all hours. It might be in the middle of the
night or 6:30 in the morning. But I have always felt like security
was working well and always felt like I was treated in a courteous
and helpful manner, and we appreciate that. I think on behalf of
all of the Members, I would just like to thank you.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN Thank you, sir.
EXPLANATION OF FISCAL YEAR 2007 INCREASES

Senator ALLARD. Now, the Capitol Police Board is requesting

close to an increase of 20 percent over the current year. If you look
at the reprogramming of funds last year, its closer to 15 percent.
Could you explain why the board believes we need to have an increase of this magnitude?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Thank you, sir. As you noted, approximately $10 million of our request thats being expended in this fiscal year in fact came from no year or supplemental funding. So, it
does reduce, in one measurement, the overall request, as you pointed out, and I thank you for recognizing that. I would say that there
are two major drivers for the increase. Under the FTE increase, as
you noted earlier, were asking for 101 more FTEs in our sworn
ranks, and were asking for 7 additional FTEs in our civilian administrative ranks. These FTE increases on the sworn side are

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principally required in terms of supporting the Capitol Visitor Center, and thats what we see as a mission expansion for us in this
coming fiscal year. The subcommittee has provided funding in fiscal year 2006 for 45 positions to help us provide the adequate security for the CVC. We are also moving a number of security posts
from Capitol division assignments into the CVC, which are no
longer going to be necessary once the CVC is open. But we still
have a shortfall of approximately 63 FTEs, which were asking for
in the fiscal year 2007 budget. In addition to that, we are asking
for an increase of approximately 11 FTEs for our dignitary protection division, and these are the men and women who are assigned
to protect the congressional leaders in the Senate and in the
House. In the past year, they have been operating at a staffing
level of about 82 percent, and that division alone has the highest
per capita cost for overtime than any element within the police department. We have not dropped protection for these leaders at all,
but it is being incurred at the expense of additional duty. So, we
are asking for an increase there.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS ATTRITION AND OTHER NEW POSITION
REQUESTS

The Library of Congress attrition numbers that we have asked

for over the last several years include an FTE increase of 10. And
then finally, we are asking for an increase of approximately 17
FTEs to augment our counterterrorism initiatives as they repel and
thwart any operational or planning initiatives which may be
brought to this complex via the number one threat that we see vehicle-born improvised explosive devices. That group, which is referred to as a Tiger Team, is being managed exclusively out of
overtime funds as well. Moving from the salary account, or staying
within the salary account, sir, additional duty, the overtime requests have increased as well. And as I pointed out, the number
of personnel that we have to apply to all the duties and responsibilities we have in this fiscal year we have to augment with additional duty. And as we schedule ahead, as we look ahead to requirements that are expanding, as well as holding steady into
2007, we see a need to increase our request for additional duty.
NONPERSONNEL INCREASES

Systems maintenance and communication systems are the other

area that are driving this budget up. And such areas that insist on
this maintenance, such as our financial systems, our information
technology systems, and our security systems are requiring some
additional funding as well. Now having said that, we are working
diligently with your staff to reduce this request for markup, and we
have applied, with the help of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and others, some strategies that we think will successfully reduce this request for fiscal year 2007. And I hope to come
back to you, and expect to come back to you through your staff very
soon with a lower request in several of the areas that we just identified.

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TIGER TEAM AND DIGNITARY PROTECTION DIVISION NEW POSITIONS
DISCUSSED

Senator ALLARD. Id like to now follow up on the 28 new officers

you have requested. As I understand it 11 of those FTE are for the
dignitary protection detail, and the remaining would be the 17for
your Tiger Team. What is driving the increases in those two areas?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir. The dignitary protection division where we have asked for an increase of 11 is being driven
principally by the amount of overtime that we have had to work
to maintain security for 10 leaders of Congress.
Senator ALLARD. Very good.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir, and the 17 that are assigned
to the Tiger Team are the counterterrorist group that I have described that are positioned around the Capitol grounds at intersections who conduct random checks of vehicles traversing the
grounds. This group is one that we are taking another look at because we have been funding that out of additional duty. And with
cooperation with your staff, we are going to see if there is a cost
benefit that can be achieved by reducing that 17 on the FTE side
of the ledger and bringing some efficiencies where we can find additional duty to offset that as we have been doing up to this point.
REDUCTION IN POLICE OVERTIME EXPLAINED

Senator ALLARD. Thank you. How have you managed your reduction in overtime? I remember in last years budget we had set some
caps on how much overtime you could pay. Are you confident we
are not incurring any additional risks as a result of the reduction
in overtime funds?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Well, first, we are very grateful for the
funding for additional duty and overtime the subcommittee has
supported us with, and I can tell you that we are going to stay
within our budget this fiscal year. One of the methods that we are
employing right now to ensure that we stay within budget now and
ideally confined a manner in which to lower our request for additional duty and overtime in the fiscal year 2007 budget request is
the result of some great collaboration that we have entered into
with the Government Accountability Office. Staff and support from
that agency has assisted us in developing what we call a threat
matrix. And just to quickly describe that, what we have been able
to do with the help of the GAO is to apply criticality factors to
every single post that we have, every single job that we perform
up here. And those criticality factors are allowing us to identify
where our critical needs are versus where our ideally positioned
needs are.
So, in other words, in assessing everything that we are doing,
were understanding what are the most important posts that have
to be manned each day. Now, one of the byproducts of this review
was that we have discovered some efficiencies that we have been
able to achieve already where we found there were some posts that
were being performed by two elements within the police department, which we were able to fold into one. And that kind of analysis is allowing us to stay within our budget this year, and its the

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same analysis thats going to allow us toIm optimisticsuccessfully reduce our additional duty requests for next year.
Senator ALLARD. Well, I want to compliment you on working
with the GAO and helping to set some priorities there. I think that
helps the Members to understand where they want to be as far as
risk and what level of security they want to have.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Thank you, sir.
DISCUSSION ON COMP TIME BALANCE REDUCTION

Senator ALLARD. On the comp time, what is the status of reducing comp time balances within the department such that no more
than 240 hours will be carried over from one year to the next?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. We have conducted an audit of all exempt employees of the police department to determine how many
have comp time balances in excess of 240 hours. Approximately 62
of the 200 plus exempt employees of the department find themselves in that category. What we have done is to develop and administer an internal control system in which without interrupting
any of the management oversight, without interrupting any of the
supervisory responsibilities that these 62 members would bring to
the day-to-day job. All comp time balances will be reduced to the
240 mark by the end of this year, and there is absolutely no expectation on the part of any of us that we would carry more than 240
hours into the next leave calendar year.
Senator ALLARD. Now, the carryover from one year to the next,
is that manageable?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. I guarantee we are going to manage this
down, yes, sir. And we have found ourselves in this situation for
several different reasons, but the most pressing one is all the work
that all of us have been performing over these last several years.
And as we find opportunities to take time off and to enjoy some of
the comp time, we are doing it. But the fact of the matter is that
many managers, including myself, will never be able to use all the
comp time that we have on the books, and that just goes with the
job.
Senator ALLARD. Goes with being a manager.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Im not a clock watcher either, and I understand. But we are going to get this issue resolved by what date do
you anticipate, or what time line?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. It will be resolved within this leave calendar year. And if I am not mistaken, I believe by January 6, 2007,
at the end of the last pay period in this leave calendar year, everyones balance will be where it needs to be.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MERGE PROGRESS

Senator ALLARD. Very good. Now, what is the status in detailing

officers from the Capitol Police to the Library of Congress, and has
progress been made in the last year in improving the police operation at the library?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Mr. Chairman, we currently have 31
Capitol Police officers assigned to the Library of Congress. That includes an inspector and most recently, two sergeants who have
been assigned as part of that complement. As you know, within our

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budget request, we request authorization to fill vacancies that
occur due to attrition in the Library of Congress, and thats what
we are doing again this year. The role that our officers are providing to the Library is to augment their security, and I must say
they have. The inspector, Tom Reynolds, has just done a magnificent job making the Library of Congress feel part of the Capitol Police and the Capitol Police feeling part of the Library of Congress.
In the area of operations, we have run evacuation drills, we have
run training programs for their managers, for their supervisors,
such things as motorcycle training and patrol techniques. We have
included the Library of Congress police department in our own departments award ceremony, and we are all working together.
There are some bumps in the road, not to avoid those or not to
think about those, but we are doing well.
SCREENING VEHICLES AT LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Senator ALLARD. Well, one area that has been called to my attention is the screening of the vehicles going to the Library of Congress, and the information Im getting is that this is not sufficiently
thorough. Have you looked at this, and do you believe this is something that we ought to address?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir, we have looked at this, and we
are right now examining the feasibility of bringing the Library of
Congress delivery systemdelivery requirements within our own
offsite delivery center. Right now, we process somewhere in the
area of abouton average, 80 trucks a day that come through the
interim offsite delivery center, and the Library has requested to
utilize that center for deliveries to its building complex as well.
And we are making some recommendations to the Capitol Police
Board, which will be reviewed and considered by that group to
work toward ensuring that the security of the Library of Congress
is just as great as this office building here.
Senator ALLARD. Do you think you can get something to us in
about 30 days or so on the cost estimate of the revised plan?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Wed need that for our budget purposes. And so,
if we can have the Board act and get back to us within that time
period, we would appreciate it.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir.
CAPITOL POLICE GENERAL COUNSEL DISCUSSION

Senator ALLARD. In regard to the Capitol Police general counsel:

Why do we need additional counsel, and why is the current general
counsel on the payroll of the House of Representatives?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. There has been a remarkable increase
in the work that counsel has had to perform. In the several years
that I have been in an executive position, I have seen this work increase dramatically. I personally bring a lot of work to that office.
We have assigned counsel to our Office of Professional Responsibility to assist us in the areas of discipline. We have assigned work
to our Office of Employment Counsel regarding performance and
performance evaluations of our own personnel. The workload simply has increased. Now, we are undertaking a review with the Capitol Police Board to determine where those positions need to be.

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Senator ALLARD. Now, is there any other position in the Capitol
Police force thats not on the Capitol Police force, but on that of either the House or Senate?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Not that Im aware of, sir.
Senator ALLARD. The answers no?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. I dont believe there are any other positions, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. I see that Mr. Pickle is indicating that
he doesnt believe there is any. So, this is an exception to what we
ordinarily have before us.
CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER RESPONSIBILITIES

In 2000, legislation was enacted that created the Chief Administrative Officer for the Capitol Police in order to address long-standing administrative problems in the department. Then in 2002, the
CAO issued a plan, as required by law, to carry out the Chief Administrative Officers responsibilities. Now, while improvements
have been made, the U.S. Capitol Police still does not have
auditable financial statements or a comprehensive foundation for
financial management according to the Government Accountability
Office. And now, Mr. Stamilio, what are the most significant areas
still to be addressed from the CAO Act, and the biggest challenges
you face in meeting those requirements?
[The information follows:]
Since becoming an independent agency in fiscal year 2003, the Capitol Police has
made significant strides in creating a solid foundation for financial management and
becoming a fully functioning, best practices financial management operation We
have, this fiscal year, implemented, on time and within budget, a full scale, predominately paperless, JFMIP compliant financial management system, report all financial transactions to the U.S. Treasury, have identified core competencies for all
financial management staff and tied those competencies to individual development
plans for all financial management staff. We have also finalized a total of 95 financial management policies and procedures as well as instituted a risk management
plan and assessment tool for evaluating internal controls within financial management operations. Additionally, we have received reports on our internal controls
from our external auditors, a practice that is highly encouraged but not required.
We also manage travel, purchase and fleet card programs and maintain robust
monitoring programs for the travel and purchase card programs to ensure proper
use of the cards. In addition, we have implemented a paperless, on-line, just in time
process for the ordering of office supplies to reduce costs by eliminating central storage and reducing inventory. We pay travel claims in an average of 4 days and have
established and maintain standard contract formats, terms, conditions and clauses
and as a practice. We prepare a semi annual statement of disbursements that reports all payment activity for all funds and recently redesigned our budget execution
process to, for the first time, manage the budget in the manner in which it was formulated and ties the budget to the strategic planning process. This provides greater
transparency to the operations of the Department as well as provides managers
with more robust tools with which to manage operations and make decisions.
We anticipate that with the implementation of the asset management system, the
completion of a full set of audited financial statements, and the ongoing review of
internal controls through implementation of our risk management plan, and the ongoing review and generation of policies and procedures, we will be nearly complete
with our transition. While we currently do not produce a full set of federal financial
statements, we do produce one of the statements, a Statement of Budgetary Resources, which is audited by an external audit firm and has received an unqualified
opinion for all audits completed. We thank the Committee for your support of our
initiatives to this point and look forward to reporting that we have reached our goal
in the new future.

Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Ill ask Tony to come forward. Mr.

Chairman, I would like to point out, because he may be a little too

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modest to do this himself, some of the success that his office has
achievedyoure absolutely right. In 2002, the Chief Administrative Officer plan called for a follow-up in 21 areas of responsibility.
This included 71 discreet actions that he was responsible for following up on. And of that, only seven remain open as we sit here
today. And of those seven, we expect only three to remain open by
the end of this fiscal year. I would suspect that Mr. Stamilio would
talk to your subcommittee and your staff about some of the success
he has had in implementing a financial management system or a
new budget system, IT systems. And theres a performance system
that we have in our police department now for executives and employees that is long overdue, and he and his staff have put together
one of the most dynamic communications and evaluations systems
that any law enforcement agency that Im familiar with has. And
these are all part of the plan that originated in 2002, and that has
been rolled up into his own business plan and part of our strategic
plan. So, theres great news in the work that he has brought to this
endeavor.
CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER ACTION PLAN

Senator ALLARD. Well, I am particularly interested in the action

plan.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Tony.
Mr. STAMILIO. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the opportunity to respond. As Chief McGaffin pointed out, as did you, the
legislation that provided for a Chief Administrative Officer and a
planresulted actually in a plan that was built in 2001 and again
revised in 2002. As we reviewed the specific actions required of
that plan that was obviously initiated by the department, there are
only seven major actions that are left, three of which I dont expect
to be accomplished by the end of this fiscal year. Those three include the documenting of our policies and procedures. Now, this is
a significant undertaking. If I could just put that piece in context
for you because I think its a significant challenge.
First off, its not that the department has not documented its
policies and procedures because it certainly has and continues to
do so. We have more work to do in this area. When we have built
procedures to put in place the types of controls that we need to
have and now were in the business of documenting those and incorporating those into our general orders process. I anticipate that
that will probably take somewhere between 3 and 6 months beyond
the end of the fiscal year to a point that I could come back to you
and say I feel like our body of documentation of our policies and
procedures is sufficient and supports an operation. So, thats one
area that remains and quite frankly, will continue as policy and
procedure must continually be updated. But its one that clearly
has our focus. And with the support of GAO, we have got some increased focus in terms of the level of specificity required there. The
second two areas that will not be accomplished by the end of this
fiscal year include implementing the cost accounting system and
complete financial statements.

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IMPLEMENTATION OF NEW FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

In both of those two initiatives, we made a conscious decision to

delay work on those and instead pull forward, with obviously significant financial support from the Congress, the implementation of
our financial management system. Thats a very significant
achievement because included in that system are many of the internal controls and the processes that we have been doing manually that are now part of the automated system. Im proud to say
that our Office of Financial Management and Office of Information
Systems has put that in place inside a year under budget and that
is our system of record and has been through the entire fiscal year.
A companion to that system is something that is a work in
progress, and that is the asset management system. Again, with
the support of Congress, the finances are available. It was impossible from a management perspective to field both of those systems
at the same time.
And so, we offset the implementation of one with the other. The
requirements of the asset management system are built. The policy
and procedures have been drafted, and we are in the implementation stage of the asset management system at this point in time
and anticipate that that will be operating probably by the end of
this fiscal year at the latest, or at least phase one of that will be
operating. With a solid financial management system and a solid
asset management system, we will be in a much better posture to
be prepared to do clean financial statements. And in fact, that is
our goal. And so, the decision to delay was to posture us to be in
a position to be able to do that.
SUMMARY OF REMAINING CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER INITIATIVES

Senator ALLARD. So, let me just summarize this. We have 11 left.

Mr. STAMILIO. No sir, we have seven left.
Senator ALLARD. Oh, seven left. And then, youre going to have
four of those seven completed, you think, by the end of this fiscal
year.
Mr. STAMILIO. Yes, sir. Thats correct.
Senator ALLARD. And then, the three remaining that you will
have after this year will be documentation, then the cost accounting system, and then the asset management system.
Mr. STAMILIO. Right.
Senator ALLARD. Now, those are really important aspects, probably the meat of the whole thing in those last three.
Mr. STAMILIO. The third being the financial statements, yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. I see.
Mr. STAMILIO. Now
Senator ALLARD. The asset management is in the cost accounting
area?
Mr. STAMILIO. No, the asset management provides us the capability to value our fixed assets and
Senator ALLARD. Sure, thats in inventory.
Mr. STAMILIO [continuing]. Prepare a balance sheet that would
withstand the scrutiny of an external audit. And so, that is a component that will put us in a position where we can have clean financial statements.

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Senator ALLARD. And when do you think youll have all this in
place for there not to be a problem with an external audit?
Mr. STAMILIO. Our target is to have clean financial statements
at the end of fiscal year 2008.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. So 2 years down the road is what youre
looking at?
Mr. STAMILIO. Yes, sir. At this point.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. STAMILIO. And depending on our ability to fully implement
and have confidence in the asset management system, we may be
able to push that up, but Im very confident that by the end of fiscal year 2008, we will have clean financial statements.
Senator ALLARD. Well, obviously there needs to be functional systems and they need to be accurate. They are very important systems, particularly from an oversight standpoint.
Mr. STAMILIO. Yes, sir.
[The information follows:]
USCP advances in the Administrative Arena start in the area of Human Capital.
First, the Performance Evaluation and Communication System (PECS) was implemented and training for it was completed. This is a competency-based personnel
performance management system and is linked to Departmental goals and objectives in the Strategic Plan.
Second, USCPs personnel information system modernization is well underway.
Accomplishments include: AVUE Implementation: Phase I accomplished for the
Data Accuracy/Integrity Project (Workbrain Organizational. alignment and Reporting), enhanced WorkBrain Reporting for Overtime; employee Self-Service implemented and a Customer Resource Center established.
A third advance toward this Human Capital goal is in the area of training. We
shifted focus of Entry-Level and In-Service Training from traditional enforcement to
Security Operations and Intelligence Training. Specifically, scenario-based training
has been implemented, a security screening certification program has been approved, and recruit officer curriculum review was completed.
We have also gained ground on our Strategic Objective entitled Leveraging technology to improve productivity. The point of this objective is to provide responsive,
high quality, cost-effective information technology services and solutions in a timely
manner. Strategic Initiatives that support this objective include developing and
maintaining an Enterprise Architecture to align business requirements and information technology investments across USCP, and modernize business systems, including transitioning to a target architecture comprised of interoperable systems
and applications, provide browser-enabled access to all USCP applications, utilize
Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) technology to implement renovated applications
and provide a phased approach to implementing target architecture.
With regard to leveraging technology, the first step is to maintain and keep operational the installed Base of Information Technology (IT) Systems. This initiative
encompasses the operation, maintenance and continued development of major systems critical to USCP operations: Computer Aided Dispatch, Time and Attendance,
Records/Document Management Network Infrastructure, MAXIMO, Livescan
Fingerprinting, Senate PERS, Radio Support Infrastructure, Microsoft Outlook
(email), MS Windows 2000 Suite.
We can report that all projects are on track and milestones are being achieved
to support this initiative.
A second step (in leveraging technology) is to complete the modernization of Administrative and Law Enforcement Programs. On this front, progress has been particularly strong for supporting Computer Aided Dispatch, Reports Processing and
the Momentum Financial Management System (FMS).
USCP has made progress to gain accreditation and certification of major systems
in compliance with the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA).
USCP annually assesses risk, certifies and accredits major systems, once every
three years, using a third party vendor, and is audited annually as part of the financial auditas well as 6 month reviews by the Government Accountability Office
(GAO). USCP is in compliance with the Federal Information Security Management
Act (FISMA). OIS identifies personnel with significant information system security
roles and responsibilities, documents those roles and responsibilities, and provides

213
appropriate information system security training before authorizing access to the
system. During fiscal year 2005, various tools and techniques were used to monitor
events on the information systems to detect attacks, and provide identification of
unauthorized use of the system. Using a third party, USCP used appropriate vulnerability scanning tools and techniques to scan for vulnerabilities.
A great deal of progress was made regarding Enterprise Architecture (EA). 95
percent of our systems are compliant with EA and this supports our strategic objective: To provide responsive, high quality, cost-effective information technology services and solutions in a timely manner. We completed (and submitted for GAO review) our EA plan (version 3). In addition, we drafted an EA version 4 with case
management and asset management systems included. Finally, the Department
aligned the IT Strategic Plan to the USCP Strategic Plan using the ProVision modeling tool.
The Department developed and maintained an electronic document and records
management system that is secure and quickly accessible (Hummingbird document
management system). In addition, we developed and implemented a training plan
for 625 personnel on the ways of Hummingbird, record management policy, and
records disposition.
There have been several accomplishments as regards our strategic objective for
Financial Managementto provide timely, reliable, and responsible financial management services, and ensure accountability for assets and resources.
First, we have been able to formulate, submit and execute a USCP Budget, consistent with our strategic plan and congressional direction. As far as improving our
budget execution, progress included: meeting with Bureaus/Offices throughout fiscal
year 2005 to review spending plans; developing list of fiscal year 2005 unfunded
items and identified savings sufficient to fund many of these items; and developing
and submitting fiscal year 2006 spending plan to committees.
USCP has responsibly managed the Department-wide acquisition processes and
procedures in accordance with applicable principles of law and authorities. Specifically we have completed implementation of the purchase card program and initiated
a fleet card pilot program.
We have performed all planning and preparatory work necessary for the new financial management system, Momentum, to become operational on October 5, 2005.
The Department also trained 95 percent of Momentum users and hired two new systems accountants.
As regards Asset Managementaccomplishments included the following: completed requirements definition of asset management project; completed on-site assessment of as-is asset management flows; identified definitive set of 629 user requirements; analyzing and evaluating asset management best practices to steer development of USCPs policies and procedures; analyzing business process reengineering for USCPs Property Management Program; analyzing to-be asset
management flows; analyzing feasibility of a phased-in implementation approach;
and updated Enterprise Architecture to reflect Asset Management.
We have made significant progress on implementing programs to assure compliance with environmental, safety/OSHA regulations. For example, we have established Mishap Reporting Procedures and new data collection software for tracking
and trending on-the-job injuries. Also we have developed a program to identify, document and correct workplace hazards. Of the more than 500 identified safety deficiencies by the Office of Compliance during the 108th Congress in USCP occupied
spaces, 100 percent of USCP action items were abated. Successfully abated over 350
safety deficiencies in USCP occupied spaces. We also successfully established a Safety Awareness Program.
In other logistics areas we have improved warehouse inventory management, updated and revised internal standard operating procedures and improved our preventative maintenance system.
DISCUSSION ON NEW POLICE CHIEF SELECTION STATUS

Senator ALLARD. I would encourage you to keep on it and keep

up the work. Now, Mr. Livingood, where are we in finding a new
chief for the department, and what time frame do you think we are
looking at for a hire there?
Mr. LIVINGOOD. Mr. Chairman, the Capitol Police Board has requested the department to develop a concept for the search for a
new Chief of Police. This concept is being developed as we speak
to include use of a search firm, the selection criteria, and items

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such as that. Upon approval of the concept, a statement of work
and deliverables, the process is estimated to be accomplished in approximately 3 to 4 months.
INSPECTOR GENERAL SELECTION STATUS

Senator ALLARD. Very good. Now, what about the inspector general? Thats another area where we have a search process in place.
Mr. LIVINGOOD. Yes, sir. The search has been completed by the
search firm, and the first interviews by the three inspector generals selected I understand has been completed or is in the process
of being completed, and we, the Board, will start interviews, we
think, within the next 2 weeks2 to 3 weeks.
MASTER TRAINING PLANCAPITOL POLICE

Senator ALLARD. Now, Id like to move to training. You talked

somewhat in your comments, Chief McGaffin, about training. Do
we have a master training plan for our Capitol Police?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. We havethe training services bureau,
thats the group that is responsible for providing all the training
for the police department, has developed a 2-year business plan
that includes within it steps toward improving master training
plans, schedules, initiatives associated with all the training within
the police department.
Senator ALLARD. So, it also includes organizational training policies as well as
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Sir
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. On-the-street training, so to speak.
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. It certainly does. It cuts all the way
acrosssworn civilian, recruit, in-service, and it is undergoing a review now with great emphasis and great energy being placed on
improving it and ensuring that it meets every core competency that
is being identified within all the positions and jobs we have in the
department.
Senator ALLARD. So, what do you see as the greatest challenge
in updating this document?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. It is a challenge, and we are working toward meeting it.
Senator ALLARD. What part of it is the greatest challenge?
Acting Chief MCGAFFIN. Oh, the greatest challenge? Im sorry,
Mr. Chairman. We have several. One is staffing. You know, to
identify core competencies and the training requirements and the
different positions we have is a challenge, but a greater one is to
ensure that you have the right instructor staff and competencies
within that instructor staff to deliver the training. And so, its a
balance. Within limited FTE staffing levels, we have got to pull
men and women out of the line to put them into the training services bureau. So, we are looking at some strategies that would
achieve efficiencies in those areas as well to include adjunct instructors who would be considered practitioners who would come
off the line.
For example, in our driver training program or our firearms program, when we would be running those courses, we would be bringing officers who are, in fact, drivers and who have been certified
as instructors in that area to come in and conduct those classes.

215
We also use our legal staff to come in and to conduct legal updates
and constitutional law reviews for us. So, we are looking for efficiencies there as well, but that is a big challenge.
CLOSING REMARKS

Senator ALLARD. Id like to thank you, Chief McGaffin. This is

sort of a last-minute responsibility you have had to incur. Its difficult to show up before this subcommittee, but we just want to
thank you for stepping forward, and you have done a great job.
Thank you for that. I also want to thank the whole Police Board
for your effort.

CAPITOL GUIDE BOARD

STATEMENT OF HON. WILSON LIVINGOOD, CHAIRMAN, CAPITOL POLICE BOARD AND CAPITOL GUIDE SERVICE
ACCOMPANIED BY:
HON. WILLIAM H. PICKLE, SERGEANT AT ARMS
HON. ALAN HANTMAN, ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL, FAIA
TOM STEVENS, DIRECTOR OF VISITOR SERVICES

Senator ALLARD. Well now move on to the Capitol Guide Board.

Mr. Livingood, youre the chairman, so youll be our next panel.
Were ready when you are.
Mr. LIVINGOOD. Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity for
the Capitol Guide Board to appear before this subcommittee. I am
pleased to come before you today to report on the operations of the
Capitol Guide Service and the Congressional Special Services Office. With me today are Mr. William Pickle, the Senate Sergeant
at Arms, and Mr. Alan Hantman, the Architect of the Capitol, who
are members of the Capitol Guide Board, and Mr. Tom Stevens, Director of Visitor Services.
PRIMARY FUNCTION

The primary function of the Capitol Guide Service is to provide

an educational, accessible, and enjoyable visit to the United States
Capitol for over 1 million visitors each year. The employees of the
Capitol Guide Service and the Congressional Special Services Office provide a wide range of tour-related services to Member offices
and public. We have had, as I said, over 1 million visitors this year,
and thats on public tours, large group of Members tours, congressional staff-led tours, and adaptive tours for visitors with disabilities.
At the current level, we this year may well reach over 1.5 million
visitors to the Capitol before October 2006.
As a quick background and I have submitted my full testimony
for the record, but just as a quick background, the Capitol Guide
Service has been in existence since 1876, and they initially employed three guides.
And since then, as you know, the Guide Service and the role of
the Guide Service has expandednot only in terms of managing
visitors to the Capitol, but in terms of added responsibilities. Following the events of September 11, the Capitol Guide Board called
upon the Guide Service to assist the Capitol Police with emergency
preparedness. Guide Service management is now equipped with
emergency radios, providing a communications bridge to the Guide
Services own radio system. All Guide Service personnel have been
trained in evacuation procedures. The Guide Service staff assists
the Capitol Police in evacuation of all those tourists on public tours
when needed.
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In addition to its daily responsibilities, the Guide Service and the
CSSO help facilitate visitors through the Capitol during special
events, such as the 2005 Presidential Inauguration, the lying in
State for President Ronald Reagan and the lying in honor for Rosa
Parks.
BUDGET REQUEST

The fiscal year 2007 budget request for the Capitol Guide Service
and the Congressional Services Office is $8,489,000. This request
includes $4,450,000 for existing operations, which is an increase of
$352,000 or 8.6 percent over the fiscal year 2006 budget. Of that
amount, 93 percent of this increase includes the COLA and increases in personnel benefits.
The single largest increase in the fiscal year 2007 request includes an additional $4,039,000 to fund 71 additional FTEs and related equipment for operations in the new Capitol Visitor Center.
The Guide Service and Congressional Special Services Office are
currently funded for 72 employees, so this is in addition to that.
The Architect of the Capitol has conducted a thorough study of the
number and type of new positions necessary for tour operations in
the new Capitol Visitor Center. The Guide Boards request for fiscal year 2007 funding reflects this need. In addition, the funding
request includes the tour-related equipment necessary for beginning the transition to operations in the Capitol Visitor Center as
soon as possible.
As we begin to transition to the new Capitol Visitor Center, we
welcome the opportunity to increase the duties and responsibilities
of the Capitol Guide Service to meet the needs of the congressional
community and the visiting public.
In closing, the dedicated employees of the Capitol Guide Service
and the Congressional Special Services Office do a tremendous,
dedicated job in providing the maximum in visitor service to all
who come here to the Capitol. Yet, none of this would be possible
without the support of this subcommittee. Thank you for your ongoing support, and well be happy to answer any questions at this
time.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

WILSON LIVINGOOD

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, thank you for this opportunity for
the Capitol Guide Board to appear before the Committee. I am pleased to come before you today to report on the operations of the Capitol Guide Service and its Congressional Special Services Office. With me today are Mr. William H. Pickle, the
Senate Sergeant at Arms and Mr. Alan Hantman, the Architect of the Capitol, who
join me as Members of the Capitol Guide Board. Also with me today is Mr. Tom
Stevens, Director of Visitor Service, who has the pleasure of overseeing the day to
day operations of the Capitol Guide Service.
The primary function of the Capitol Guide Service is to provide an enjoyable and
accessible visit to the United States Capitol for over one million visitors annually.
In fiscal year 2005 the Guide Service accommodated approximately 353,000 visitors
on Public tours alone. Also, the Guide Service led approximately 96,000 visitors on
Member Reserved Group tours, 19,000 on Congressional member tours (early-morning tours) and 7,000 on Dome tours. The Guide Service also trained over 3,000 Congressional staff to give tours and regulated the flow of approximately 680,000 visitors on staff-led tours. Additionally, the Guide Service through its Congressional
Special Services Office, provided over 850 hours of sign language interpreting services for Congressional business, accommodated more than 1,300 visitors on adaptive
tours for visitors with disabilities and provided elevator escorts for more than 9,000

219
visitors. If current levels are an indicator, we may reach 1.5 million visitors to the
Capitol before this October.
The Capitol Guide Service has been in existence since 1876, employing three
guides when it was established for the centennial celebration. The Capitol Guide
Boardsimilar in composition to the Capitol Police Board (House and Senate Sergeants at Arms and Architect of the Capitol)was established in 1970 to formalize
the Guide Service as a professional entity within the Congress and to supervise and
direct its operation.1 The authorizing legislation in 1970 called upon the Guide Service, which employed twenty-four guides at the time, to not only provide educational
tours of the Capitol but also to assist the Capitol Police by providing ushering and
informational services, and other services not directly involving law enforcement, in
connection with ceremonial occasions in the Capitol or on Capitol Grounds, among
other duties.
Since then, the role of the Guide Service has expanded to include additional responsibilities. Following the events of 9/11, we called upon the Guide Service to assist the Capitol Police with emergency preparedness. Guide Service management is
now equipped with emergency radios, providing a communications bridge to the
Guide Services own radio system. All Guide Service personnel have been trained
in evacuation procedures. It falls to the Guide Service staff to assist the Capitol Police in the evacuation of those on public tours, who for the most part, have never
been inside the Capitol Building before.
Today, we are budgeted for 72 Guide Service employees to perform these services.
We welcome the opportunity to increase the duties of the Guide Service to meet the
needs of the Congressional community as we transition to the Capitol Visitor Center.
For fiscal year 2007, the Guide Service is requesting a total budget of $8,489,000.
This request includes $4,450,000 for existing operations which is an increase of
$352,000 or 8.6 percent over the fiscal year 2006 budget. Of that amount, $328,000
(93 percent) of this increase over fiscal year 2006 includes the estimated fiscal year
2007 COLA and increases in personnel benefits. This part of the requested increase
would enable the Guide Service to maintain the level of service currently being provided to Members of Congress and their guests based on current visitation volume
and services provided. Secondly, this request includes $4,039,000 to fund 71 additional FTEs and related equipment to operate in the new Capitol Visitor Center.
The staff of the Capitol Guide Service and its Congressional Special Services office
has done a tremendous job in providing the utmost in visitor services to all who
come to experience the Capitol. The accomplishments of this office would not be possible without the support of this Committee. We thank you for your support and
the opportunity to present this testimony and answer your questions.
CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER OPENING

Senator ALLARD. Well, thank you. I have four questions here Id

just like to cover with you this morning. The Guide Service and you
are planning for the opening of the Capitol Visitor Center. Is this
going to be a seamless operation as we move forward with the CVC
operations?
Mr. LIVINGOOD. Alan, do you want
Senator ALLARD. Mr. Hantman.
Mr. HANTMAN. Mr. Chairman, good morning.
Senator ALLARD. Good morning.
Mr. HANTMAN. Tom Stevens has been meeting with our transition team, with our operations team regularly for the last couple
of years; talking about the role of the Capitol Guide Service with
respect to the operations of the visitor center itself. We fully expect
that once we get the executive director on board and working together with this team, which needs to be enlarged, both on the executive director side as well as on the Guide Board side, that we
will have a seamless operation. Clearly, the plan is for hiring,
1 Effective January 3, 1971, Public Law 91510 made the tour guides legislative employees
under the jurisdiction of the Capitol Guide Board. The first free guided tour was conducted on
January 3, 1971.

220
starting in 2007, for the Capitol Guide team, the additional 71 people that Zell has identified. And obviously, the new functions that
the Guide Service will be accommodating; such as boarding buses,
talking to people before they actually get off the buses, to come into
the visitor center, greeting people once they come through the
screening area, working in the orientation theater areas, bringing
people into those theaters, out of the theaters to be broken up into
smaller groups to tour the Capitol building itself. Inside the exhibition areasall of these functions and the new information desks
inside the visitor center as well, will be staffed by the new people
identified for the Guide Service. Its a tremendous increase in the
responsibility and scope. And with the ability now to welcome and
educate people as they come to visit their Nations Capitol, as we
have not been able to do in the past, will be a wonderful new role,
an expanded role for the Guide Service.
FULL-TIME EQUIVALENTS

Senator ALLARD. Now, youve got 71 FTEs, and 24 of those are

going to be full time, and youre planning on 37 that will be half
time, or part time.
Mr. HANTMAN. Tom.
Mr. STEVENS. Its 37 FTEs that actually split for 6-month positions, so its actually 74 bodies, if you will, during the peak season.
Senator ALLARD. Okay, and do you anticipate any difficulties in
hiring these half-time employees?
Mr. STEVENS. Well, we dont at this point. Zell has volunteered
their services to assist us in recruiting and advertising and actually hiring those folks.
Senator ALLARD. Where are you anticipating the half-time employees would come from?
Mr. STEVENS. Well, what we see now are a number of college students, retirees, folks that go south for the winter, but are up here
during the summer that enjoy the environment and come to work
for us. And this is in addition to our volunteer staffing that well
actually be beefing up.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now, are you confident that the numbers
of Guide Service employees requested for the CVC are sufficient?
Mr. STEVENS. I certainly believe for year one we will have sufficient staffing. Hopefully we will not have any kind of legislation
that limits our maximum staffing levels. That is, we are budgeted
for 143 FTEs, including the current staff. Some of those might be
9-month employees, some 6 month, and some 3 month. Its obviously unrealistic to try to hire all those people and get them
trained in a 1-month period. So, itll be a ramping up just as the
season ramps up for us and then slowly ramping down in the fall,
as does the visitor season.
HIRING FOR THE CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER

Senator ALLARD. Based on the oversight that we have been having on a monthly basis with the Capitol Visitor Center, testimony
is indicating that May is when the CVC would open. When do you
begin hiring for the CVC positions with a May opening date?
Mr. STEVENS. I think we have to anticipate somewhere very close
to the first of the year, aggressively advertising and recruiting.

221
Part of the challenge in training is finding adequate space. We do
some training now, but our facilities are very limited. Maybe we
can borrow some space to do some larger training classes of 50 or
60 at a time, but thats probably going to be the biggest challenge
because much of what we do is very unique to our office. They
arent skills that people typically bring with them from previous
employment. So, it does take several weeks to even give people a
rudimentary knowledge of the building to where we are comfortable with them actually interacting with the visitors.
CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY

Senator ALLARD. Do we have to deal with a certificate of occupancy on the new Capitol Visitor Center where people are not allowed in until you get your final inspection? My point is we may
have part of the Capitol Visitor Center available if we could get
into it before final inspection for employee training.
Mr. HANTMAN. We would expect, Mr. Chairman, that for training
functions, some of the functions that Tom and the team will need
to go through, that wed be able to do that a period of weeks before
a certificate of occupancy is issued for the central area. The training that would have to go on that would, say, use outside sample
groups, if you will, to move through the center would probably be
done more likely after a certificate of occupancy was obtained for
general people to come in as opposed to employees.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Thats all the questions I have. Again, I
want to thank the panel for showing up this morning and testifying
before this subcommittee.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

The subcommittee stands in recess until Wednesday, April 26, at

10:30 a.m. when we will take testimony from the Government Accountability Office on its fiscal year 2007 budget request, as well
as receive an update from the Architect of the Capitol and the GAO
on the progress of the Capitol Visitor Center. Look forward to seeing you then. Thank you.
[Whereupon, at 11:56 a.m., Wednesday, April 5, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, April 26.]

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2007
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 26, 2006

U.S. SENATE,
APPROPRIATIONS,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 10:30 a.m., in room SD138, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Wayne Allard (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senator Allard.
SUBCOMMITTEE

OF THE

COMMITTEE

ON

GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE

STATEMENT OF DAVID M. WALKER, COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE
UNITED STATES
ACCOMPANIED BY:
GENE L. DODARO, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
SALLYANNE HARPER, CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER
GEORGE G. STRADER, CONTROLLER
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Senator ALLARD. The hour of 10:30 having arrived and staying

on schedule like we do, were going to call the Subcommittee on the
Legislative Branch to order. This is a hearing on the 2007 budget
for the Government Accountability Office (GAO). We will meet
today to take testimony on the fiscal year 2007 budget request for
the Government Accountability Office, as well as review other GAO
matters.
Welcoming our witnesses this morning, we have Mr. David Walker, Comptroller General; Gene Dodaro, Chief Operating Officer;
Sallyanne Harper, Chief Administrative Officer; and George
Strader, GAOs Controller. I look forward to hearing how you are
implementing goal setting and tying that in with your budget figures and employee performance.
NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE ON MISSILE DEFENSE PROGRAM

Before we discuss GAOs fiscal 2007 budget request, Id like to

take a few moments to discuss an issue of deep concern to me. On
April 2 of this year, the New York Times published a story alleging
that the Government Accountability Officeand I quote, ignored
evidence that contractors doctored data, skewed test results, and
made false claims, close quote, in a 2002 report on missile defense.
The article was based on information provided by Mr. Subrata
Ghoshroy, a GAO analyst who is on loan to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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224
The information provided by Mr. Ghoshroy raises several troubling issues and calls into question the integrity of the GAOs investigative process. Even more disturbing are Mr. Ghoshroys accusations that GAO personnel deliberately undermined this investigation and possibly altered documents to avoid investigating key
items that might have lead to revelations of contractor fraud.
I am especially interested in knowing how GAO made a unilateral decision to alter the scope of the investigation without securing
the concurrence of the members who requested the investigation.
Mr. Walker, I realize that some have used this issue to promote
their own political agenda. In the context of this hearing, the policy
does not interest me, really. I am interested in the process. And as
the subcommittee responsible for overseeing the GAO, I believe we
have an obligation to get to the bottom of the allegations. The
GAOs reputation and credibility depends upon its ability to accurately investigate the executive branch on behalf of Congress. Accountability, integrity, and reliability are GAOs core tenets and I
think we need to maintain those.
So Mr. Walker, please proceed with your statement.
Mr. WALKER. Sure. Would you like me to address that issue now.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
And then, lets go ahead and move on to your budget.
MR. WALKERS RESPONSE TO THE NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE

Mr. WALKER. Thatll be great. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Its a

pleasure to be back before you and I look forward to talking about
the budget. But let me go ahead and address this issue, because
I think it is important we try to put it to rest.
First, the allegations lack merit. Just because they are printed,
doesnt mean they are true. I can tell you that we conducted three
internal reviews on this matter. Any time that I received a complaint, from either Mr. Berman or Mr. Ghoshroy, I expeditiously
took steps to try to review those. I commissioned three internal reviews and all of those reviews came out to say that the assertions
lacked merit.
Furthermore, there was a prize winning investigative reporter
from 1 of the top 10 papers in the United Stateswho spent
months last year conducting an independent investigation of this.
And after months, the reporter determined that it lacked merit and
was not worthy of publication.
Furthermore, I think its important for you to know, that this report was 1 of about 4,000 that weve issued in the last several
years. Its also one of many that weve issued on national missile
defense, and we take our quality control procedures very seriously.
We want you to be able to rely upon our work and for the American
people to be able to rely on our work. I think its important for you
to also know that last year we had two independent peer reviews
conducted of GAOs quality assurance processes. One by KPMG on
our financial audits. One by a multinational team lead by Canada,
involving seven countries who looked at our quality control procedures and non-financial audit work. You can rely on our work.

225
LESSONS LEARNED FROM MISSILE DEFENSE ENGAGEMENT

Now with regard to lessons learned. There are two important lessons learned from this engagement. Number one, we never should
have accepted it from day one. We were asked to do work on a matter that, after further investigation, was pending in the Federal
courts. In my view, there was an attempt to get GAO to intervene
in private party litigation and to use GAOs work to further that
private party litigation. That is wholly inappropriate, in my opinion.
So first, we made a mistake by accepting the engagement. But
after it became clear, and after we had accepted to do some work,
that we were being asked to do something relating to litigation that
was pending, we made an attempt to modify the objectives of the
engagement, in order to be able to do something without directly
intervening in that litigation.
In doing that, we made a second mistake. And that is, when we
communicated with the requestors staff about the need to make a
change and what our change would be, we did not communicate it
in writing. That was a mistake. As a result, that led to an expectation gap between the requestor and us as well as I think, this particular employee who is on a leave of absence, who has dogged us
ever since.
We have modified our procedures with regard to engagement acceptance. We have also modified our procedures with regard to
modifying engagement objectives after weve accepted an engagement. We have not had any other instances like this occur, and I
can assure you well do everything we can to make sure it doesnt
reoccur. But I can also assure you, that you can rely upon our work
including that report.
BACKGROUND ON MISSILE DEFENSE ARTICLE

Senator ALLARD. Now, Im just going to follow up with a question

and well just get this off the table and move on with the budget.
Its really unusual for a GAO employee to come forward like this.
I cant recall any, and you indicated in your testimony that has
never happened. In this particular instance, what caused your analyst to complain to the press, from your point of view?
Mr. WALKER. Mr. Chairman, to a certain extent, I would be speculating. I think the problem is, that the analyst wanted us to do
the original work and when we modified the scope of the engagement to make sure that we did not interject GAO into ongoing litigation, I think the analyst had difficulty accepting that, even
though it was very consistent with GAOs longstanding policy well
before I was at GAO, that we wont interject ourselves into pending
litigation.
I think the analyst also had difficulty in understanding that
while every persons opinion counts at GAO, no matter what your
position is, no matter what your level is, no matter what your classification is, in the final analysis while everybody needs to be heard
and is heard, we make institutional decisions.
Senator ALLARD. And this was in a lawsuit that he had a personal interest in?

226
Mr. WALKER. To my knowledge, he didnt have a personal interest. But its also my understanding; he may have known some of
the parties who did have a personal interest in the litigation.
Thats something that were following up on. Since the report appeared in the New York Times, I have received information from
a party, not in government, but a very high ranking official whos
aware of this situation, who believes that there may have been
some relationships that need to be reviewed, and we are in the
process of doing that. These are allegations. They may or may not
be true. And unless and until we review it and investigate it, I
would prefer not to go into more detail. But I would be more than
happy to keep you apprised, as I promised Congressman Berman
as well as Senator Grassley to keep them apprised.
Senator ALLARD. Well I would appreciate that. Im glad that you
feel that youve learned some things. We all make mistakes occasionally and we need to learn from those mistakes. But aside from
that, do you think the review was taken in the most professional
and unbiased manner possible?
Mr. WALKER. You can rely on that work, Mr. Chairman. The
other thing that one has to keep in mind, is the Justice Department was already well aware of this matter.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. WALKER. And so, this was not something new. This was not
something where people were relying on GAO to be able to advise
the Justice Department as to whether or not the Governments interest should be protected. In fact, the Justice Department conducted its own independent review, its my understanding, to determine whether and to what extent they should intervene in this action. They decided not to intervene in this action.
I can tell you, Mr. Chairman, we have spent a tremendous
amount of time institutionally, as well as myself individually, and
weve spent a significant amount of taxpayer resources taking this
matter very seriously. Im just hoping were to the point that we
can move forward.
PRIOR DISCUSSIONS WITH THE CONGRESS ON MISSILE DEFENSE

Senator ALLARD. Yes. Youve now talked to Mr. Berman and Senator Grassley about this misjudgment that youve made in taking
on the case and subsequently had to change the scope. Even
though it was after the fact, did they agree in light of the court
case, that this is a change that needed to be made?
Mr. WALKER. They understand and they accept what we did and
why we did it. Ive spoken to Mr. Berman on several occasions over
several years about this. In fact, I was very surprised when the article appeared in the New York Times, because there had been no
attempt to communicate with me on this for almost 2 years. After
all the efforts I had taken, and that we institutionally had taken
on this, it was really a surprise to me. In fact, the letter that resulted in the New York Times articlethe 41 page letter, dated
December 19, 2005, was never provided to me or anybody else at
GAO. We had to get it off of Mr. Bermans website the day after
it appeared in the New York Times.
Senator ALLARD. I see.

227
Mr. WALKER. I will say for the record, that I had the professional
courtesy to send Subrata Ghoshroy a copy of my response to his
letter, which I think obviously, is appropriate.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES POLICY ON ENGAGEMENTS
PENDING LITIGATION

Senator ALLARD. Yes. Now your policy, prior to 2002, has not
been to take on studies that might involve you in a court case. Is
that the policy now?
Mr. WALKER. Our policy was and remains not to have GAO directly address issues that are pending before the Federal courts.
Senator ALLARD. Is it just Federal courts or is it local courts too?
Mr. WALKER. Its generalits any court. But typically, its Federal courts when somebody would be involving us to do anything
regarding Federal spending, programs or whatever else. We never
should have accepted it. Once we did accept it, we endeavored to
try to be able to modify the objectives to not directly intervene. But
that created certain expectation gaps within our organization and
outside our organization. In fact, I communicated with Mr. Berman
about this within the last couple of weeks and I think we both
agree, that rather than modify the objectives, we probably should
have said, were not going to do anything.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. WALKER. Because it created certain expectation gaps. So, as
you know, no good deed goes unpunished. I mean youre trying to
provide some type of service. But we have learned lessons. In summary, you can rely on this report and we did take the complaints
very seriously.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES QUALITY CONTROL
PROCEDURES

Senator ALLARD. Now how does GAO deal with concerns that are
raised by analysts as to the direction the report is going in or the
conclusions being drawn during the course of the job?
Mr. WALKER. Let me provide an overview of our quality control
procedures, Mr. Chairman. I think it would help. As you can imagine, we receive 25 to 50 requests in a typical week from the Congress for us to do work. Every Monday afternoon, Gene Dodaro, our
Chief Operating Officer, after getting input from me, chairs a meeting reviewing all of those requests involving the managing directors of all of our key teams, and we make a decision, typically within 10 days, on whether or not were going to accept it. We also assign who is going to be the leader. We also identify, given the nature of the work, the complexity of the work, what were being
asked to do, and who the other key stakeholders are that need to
be involved. For most of the work that we do, there are multiple
key stakeholders, or multiple organizations, as was the case with
this report. There are usually a number of key organizations that
have to be involved to bring the right skills and knowledge together
to do the best job and to mitigate related risk.
Then staff are assigned. We have an extensive quality control
process that includes periodic status reports on each major engagement. We also have a quality control process that includes internal
reviews of all draft reports. We have a quality control process that

228
includes providing an opportunity for any of the agencies that
would be affected, to comment on the report before it is made final.
If there are differences of opinion within our agency between key
stakeholders, they are to buck it up the chain of command. If necessary, to my level, to get it resolved.
Interestingly with regard to this report, we have a policy where
before we issue any report, every stakeholder thats assigned to the
engagement has to sign off on the report. That was the case here,
including the person whos complaining.
Senator ALLARD. So the person whos raising the complaint
signed off on the report?
Mr. WALKER. He signed off on the report.
ENSURING THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORTS ARE
IMPARTIAL

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now, what steps do you take to ensure

that your employees or consultants that you are working with dont
have an over sympathetic relationship with individuals involved in
your investigation, in a way that might distort the outcome of that
report?
Mr. WALKER. As you know, Mr. Chairman, we have professional
independence standards that relate to GAO. We also have supplemental internal policies and procedures. We set a very high bar on
both institutional independence, as well as individual independence
with regard to particular engagements. So when were staffing,
were looking for that. The people have to let us know if they think
they have any potential impairments that we need to be aware of.
I would ask Gene Dodaro, our Chief Operating Officer, to comment
in more detail.
Senator ALLARD. Mr. Dodaro.
Mr. DODARO. Good morning, Senator. We have several different
safeguards in place. Annually, each employee is to sign a statement
of independence, saying that they are free from any personal impairments. Every employee also files a financial disclosure statement thats reviewed by their supervisor, so we can tell if they
have any financial interest that may be an issue.
Then, when individual engagements are staffed, every employee
is reminded that they are to notify their manager if they have any
personal or other conflicts with their assignment to that engagement. And then, they sign off on every individual engagement.
Now, we didnt have that particular procedure in place back
when this engagement was conducted, but weve added it since
then. Weve always had the annual certification. Weve always had
the requirement that each employee notify managers if they have
any conflicts of interest.
So the burden is on individual employees to notify managers. But
we do have institutional safeguards and do some independent
checking, as well.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. And just kind of a summary question
here. Mr. Dodaro, you mentioned a couple lessons learned. Can we
just get a summary of lessons learned and then actions that have
been taken, so that doesnt happen again?
Mr. WALKER. Absolutely, Mr. Chairman. Wed be happy to provide that for the record.

229
Senator ALLARD. If you would, please.
Mr. WALKER. We will do it.
[The information follows:]
Question. How has GAO responded to the allegations about the February 2002
missile defense program report and what changes, if any, have you made to GAOs
internal processes as a result?
Answer. We have taken these concerns very seriously. In total, I initiated three
internal reviews to respond to the concerns and most recently, in April 2006, provided a detailed response to Senator Grassley and Representative Berman addressing questions about the report. In summary,
The three internal reviews that have been conducted, including one by our Inspector General, found that our 2002 report was done in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards and the allegations raised were
not substantiated. In particular, these reviews determined that there was no
credible evidence supporting the assertion of conflicts of interest by GAO personnel involved with the engagement nor was there any credible evidence that
would raise questions regarding the integrity of our workpapers.
The missile defense reports findings represent the consensus view of our most
senior technical and professional staff. Differences of opinion during the course
of the work were resolved by the time the report was issued, as evidenced by
the signatures of all the stakeholders on the engagement, including the employee making the assertions. As a result, we continue to stand behind the report. While the employee who made the allegations, like all the other team
members did play a role in this engagement, he was one of four technical people
involved in the project. In addition, while all GAO employees opinions are important and sought, the opinion of a single individual is not sufficient to create
an institutional position.
Importantly, the objective of our engagement was not to adjudicate whether
false claims had or had not been made nor did we attempt to do so. In hindsight, we should not have accepted the original July 2000 request because of
the then-ongoing litigation over the central issues involved in the sensor test.
Once we identified the need to restructure the engagement in order to be consistent with long-standing GAO policy involving matters pending before the
courts, we took corrective action to avoid directly inserting GAO into the issues
that were the subject of the litigation. The Justice Department was already
aware of allegations of false claims prior to GAO issuing its report. Furthermore, the Justice Department conducted its own review of this matter and decided not to pursue it. As I have noted in previous communications on this matter, we should have done a better job of communicating to the requester that
we were revising our audit scope and objectives and documenting such revisions. Clearly this communication gap underlies the fundamental misunderstanding that is at the heart of this dispute both internally and externally,
which has now consumed a significant amount of time and taxpayer resources
over several years.
GAO has a strong, clear, and consistent record of aggressively pursuing fraud,
waste, abuse, and mismanagement within government, including the Defense
Department, in general, and defense contracting and weapons acquisitions, in
particular. In fact, eight individual DOD areas are on GAOs high risk list including weapons systems acquisition and several government wide high risk
areas apply to DOD as well. Our reviews of missile defense issues have been
an important part of this body of work.
In part as a result of the 2002 missile defense report, we have clarified our written policies and introduced new procedures pertaining to requests for work that deal
with issues in litigation. Our written policies have been revised to emphasize that
our Office of General Counsel should help identify and analyze any ongoing or anticipated litigation that could affect the engagement acceptance decision, and that
this office should be consulted about such matters. In addition, the July 2004 update
to our Congressional Protocols specifies that one of the factors that will be considered in determining whether to accept congressional requests is whether the matter
is pending before administrative or judicial forums. We also have been giving greater attention to this issue at our weekly Engagement Acceptance Meeting, where all
new congressional requests and mandates are discussed to determine, among other
things, whether the work should be done and the appropriate level of Office of
Comptroller General involvement. Known or potential issues involving litigation are
discussed at the Engagement Acceptance Meeting as part of deciding whether GAO
should accept the engagement. Lastly, we hold bi-weekly Engagement Review Meetings to discuss progress or issues on ongoing assignments that may require senior

230
GAO management attention, such as litigation that may have been initiated since
an engagement was begun and that may impact the engagements scope or objectives.
Regarding the issue of communicating changes in the scope of GAO work to requesters, once I became aware of the miscommunication on the missile defense engagement, we strengthened our internal policies and practices to protect against
such communication problems in the future. Specifically, our practice is now to not
only discuss significant changes in the scope of work, but also to document this discussion with a letter to the requester outlining the changes. Additional communication requirements in the protocols include holding discussions and sending documenting letters concerning our acceptance/declination of a request; and our agreement with the requester on the terms of the engagement. The practice of providing
briefings and sending letters to the requester whenever there is a significant change
in the objectives or scope of an engagementcoupled with the attention we give to
these issues in Engagement Acceptance and Engagement Review Meetingsshould
help ensure solid communications with our congressional clients on these issues.
In regard to assuring the independence of GAO staff, at the start of each engagement, the engagements Director discusses the need to maintain independence with
the engagement team and asks if anyone has any independence issues. This discussion is documented. If an individuals personal impairment cannot be mitigated, the
individual will not perform the audit. When the design of an engagement is completed and documented (referred to as a design matrix), all engagement staff and
stakeholders certify on the design matrix that they are free of any impairments to
their independence and that they will notify their supervisor if such impairments
should arise.
Finally, it is our longstanding policy and practice that GAOs professional staff
represent their independence by (1) signing an annual Statement of Independence
stating that they have no personal or external impairments and understand the requirements for independence as stated in our professional standards (Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards), (2) identifying financial interests and filing
an annual Financial Disclosure report that is reviewed by Executive Committee
members, Managing Directors, or designees; and (3) reporting to their Managing Director when they are seeking employment at the entity being audited and obtaining
their Managing Directors approval to engage in outside activities.
Question. What policies and practices have you put in place to assure that (1)
GAO does not accept requests for work on matters involving pending litigation, (2)
changes in the scope of work are communicated to requesters, and (3) GAO staff
are free of any impairments related to the subject or conduct of an engagement?
Answer. It has been our long-standing policy to generally avoid addressing any
issue that is directly related to a matter pending in the Courts. In addition, we do
not believe it is appropriate to use GAO as a means of advancing the interests or
positions of private parties in pending litigation, whether intentionally or unintentionally. As a general rule, we will seek to avoid such engagements unless we believe we can structure our work to avoid influencing or directly interfering with
pending litigation.
In part as a result of the 2002 missile defense report, we have clarified our written policies and introduced new procedures pertaining to requests for work that deal
with issues in litigation. Our written policies have been revised to emphasize that
our Office of General Counsel should help identify and analyze any ongoing or anticipated litigation that could affect the engagement acceptance decision, and that
this office should be consulted about such matters. In addition, the July 2004 update
to our Congressional Protocols specifies that one of the factors that will be considered in determining whether to accept congressional requests is whether the matter
is pending before administrative or judicial forums. We also have been giving greater attention to this issue at our weekly Engagement Acceptance Meeting, where all
new congressional requests and mandates are discussed to determine, among other
things, whether the work should be done and the appropriate level of Office of
Comptroller General involvement. Lastly, we hold bi-weekly Engagement Review
Meetings to discuss progress or issues on ongoing assignments that may require
senior GAO management attention, such as litigation that may have been initiated
since an engagement was begun and that may impact the engagements scope or objectives.
Regarding the issue of communicating changes in the scope of GAO work to requesters, once we became aware of the miscommunication on the missile defense engagement, we strengthened our internal policies and practices to protect against
such communication problems in the future. Specifically, our practice is now to not
only discuss significant changes in the scope of work, but also to document this discussion with a letter to the requester outlining the changes. Additional communica-

231
tion requirements in the protocols include holding discussions and sending documenting letters concerning our acceptance/declination of a request; and our agreement with the requester on the terms of the engagement. The practice of providing
briefings and sending letters to the requester whenever there is a significant change
in the objectives or scope of an engagementcoupled with the attention we give to
these issues in Engagement Acceptance and Engagement Review Meetingsshould
help ensure solid communications with our congressional clients on these issues.
In regard to assuring the independence of GAO staff, at the start of each engagement, the engagements Director discusses the need to maintain independence with
the engagement team and asks if anyone has any independence issues. This discussion is documented. If an individuals personal impairment cannot be mitigated, the
individual will not perform the audit. When the design of an engagement is completed and documented (referred to as a design matrix), all engagement staff and
stakeholders certify on the design matrix that they are free of any impairments to
their independence and that they will notify their supervisor if such impairments
should arise.
Finally, it is our longstanding policy and practice that GAOs professional staff
represent their independence by (1) signing an annual Statement of Independence
stating that they have no personal or external impairments and understand the requirements for independence as stated in our professional standards (Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards), (2) identifying financial interests and filing
an annual Financial Disclosure report that is reviewed by Executive Committee
members, Managing Directors, or designees; and (3) reporting to their Managing Director when they are seeking employment at the entity being audited and obtaining
their Managing Directors approval to engage in outside activities.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES FISCAL YEAR 2005
ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Lets go ahead and proceed with your

budget, and hear what you have to say in that regard.
Mr. WALKER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate that very
much. I want to thank you for the opportunity to appear before you
again, and I want to thank your subcommittee for your past support. Briefly, Id like to touch on some of our accomplishments for
last year, and then our budget request for 2007.
In the last fiscal year, ended September 30, 2005, as you know,
GAO is trying to lead by example in transforming what we do and
how we do business, focusing on positive results that benefit the
Congress and the American people. Last year, we met or exceeded
10 of our 14 performance measures. We matched or set all time
records for three of those performance measures. We achieved
$39.6 billion in financial benefits. Thats an $83 return for every
$1 invested in GAO. Thats number one in the world. Nobodys
even close. Nobody else is even in double digits. We had a 93 percent positive client feedback score and we set all time records on
our employee feedback scores. So on all dimensions; it was a very
good year.
We issued two strategic documents of critical importance to the
Congress and the country. The first was our High Risk Update
listing high risk programs, functions, and activities in the Federal
Government. The second one was our 21st Century Challenges
document, which I know Mr. Chairman, youve seen. This document lays out a series of questions that need to be asked and answered in order to re-engineer the Government to address 21st century challenges and capitalize on related opportunities.
We strengthened various partnerships, both domestically and
internationally. For example, we led the effort to develop the first
ever strategic plan for auditors general around the world, modeled
after GAOs plan. We also led the effort that resulted in the first

232
ever National Intergovernmental Audit Forum strategic plan which
involves Federal, State, and local auditors. Its important that we
partner for progress, because we all have limited resources, if were
going to achieve maximum results.
We successfully completed, as I mentioned before, two external
peer reviews, providing assurance to the Congress and the American people in connection with our quality control processes. They
resulted not only in clean opinions, but also a number of global
good practices that were identified.
A couple of areas for continuous improvement were noted in the
reports, and we are taking steps in light of those recommendations.
We have implemented additional flexibilities provided by this Congress, dealing with our human capital classification and compensation systems. We now have market-based pay ranges for all GAO
personnel. We now have a compensation system that pays based
upon skills, knowledge, and performance. We also have extended
pay banding to all of our administrative personnel. There are no
GAO employees on the GS system. Not one.
We are a window to the future, Mr. Chairman, with regard to
this area. We most recentlyand this is in fiscal 2006, had to accomplish the most difficult thing well ever do internally and that
is to make tough decisions for our so-called Band II, or mid-level
senior auditors, investigators, analysts, and evaluators, to determine which ones should benefit from higher pay ranges that came
out of the pay study and which ones should not.
We found when that pay study came out, that it was good news
and bad news. The good news was, depending on a persons level
of responsibilities and their performance; they should have the opportunity to earn up to $10,000 more than under our old system.
The bad news was that if some persons were not leading on a recurring basis or their performance did not justify, we were paying
them too much. And so, we had to go through a system, on an individual by individual basis, which I am happy to answer questions
on if you so desire, that resulted in decisions for applicable individuals, including some resulting from personal appeals that came to
me.
In the final analysis, weve got only 1 percent of our Band II employees that have made independent appeals to our external review
body. I think that is a minor miracle, and we obviously look forward to working with that body to resolve those appeals.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET
REQUEST

As far as 2007, as has been the case, we are trying to be modest

with regard to our budget requests. We know the country is in a
deficit situation. Were asking for about a 5-percent increase relating directly and overwhelmingly to mandatory and uncontrollable
increases.
I would respectfully suggest, Mr. Chairman that you not just consider what our increase is for this year, but also how weve been
treated over the last several years. For example, since fiscal 2000,
GAOs budget has increased 10 percent in constant dollars. The average legislative branch constant dollar increase during the same
period is 36 percent. So I would respectfully suggest that you not

233
just look at what were asking for now, but how weve been treated
in the past and what results were generating for the Congress and
the American people, making the tough decisions that youre going
to have to make, with regard to limited resource allocations.
Were asking for 50 additional full-time equivalents (FTEs). The
reason were asking for them, is that were facing increasing supply
and demand imbalances in congressional requests versus our ability to address those requests in a timely manner in several areas,
such as healthcare and homeland security.
And last, were asking for a few targeted investments based on
a business case, one time money that we would hopefully get funded for and will reverse out of our base, for things like replacing our
20 year old financial management system and enhancing our physical and information security requirements. In that regard, Mr.
Chairman, its not just for us, but were one of several contingent
sites for the Congress in the event of an unexpected catastrophic
event.
PREPARED STATEMENT

So, were not just trying to take care of ourselves and our people,
were also trying to be in a position to help the Congress in the
event that the Congress needs to use our facilities, which has already happened once in the history of the republic. I hope it wont
happen again. But if it does, we want to be ready.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

DAVID M. WALKER

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to appear before the
Committee today in support of the fiscal year 2007 budget request for the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). This request will help us continue our support
of the Congress in meeting its constitutional responsibilities and will help improve
the performance and ensure the accountability of the federal government for the
benefit of the American people.
Budget constraints in the federal government grew tighter in fiscal years 2005
and 2006. In developing our fiscal year 2007 budget, we considered those constraints
consistent with GAOs and the Committees desire to lead by example. In fiscal
year 2007, we are requesting budget authority of $509.4 million, a reasonable 5 percent increase over our fiscal year 2006 revised funding level. In the event Congress
acts to hold federal pay increases to 2.2 percent, our requested increase will drop
to below 5 percent. This request will allow us to continue making improvements in
productivity, maintain our progress in technology and other transformation areas,
and support a full-time equivalent (FTE) staffing level of 3,267. This represents an
increase of 50 FTEs over our planned fiscal year 2006 staffing level and will allow
us to rebuild our workforce to a level that will position us to better respond to increasing supply and demand imbalances in areas such as disaster assistance, the
global war on terrorism, homeland security, forensic auditing, and health care.
I am proud of the work we accomplished this past fiscal year in support of the
Congress and the American people. We provided our congressional clients with timely, objective, and reliable information on how well government programs and policies are working and, when needed, recommendations for improvement. In the years
ahead, our support to the Congress will likely prove to be even more critical because
of the pressures created by our nations current and projected budget deficit and
growing long-term fiscal imbalance. Indeed, as it considers those fiscal pressures,
the Congress will be grappling with tough choices about what government does, how
it does business, and who should do the governments business. GAO is a valuable
tool for helping the Congress review, reprioritize, and revise existing mandatory and
discretionary spending programs and tax policies. Additionally, through its involvement domestically with the federal, state, and local audit community and internationally with its national audit office counterparts, GAO has playedand will

234
continue to playan important role in helping to ensure the financial integrity of
U.S. funds expended at home and abroad. GAO-led efforts to develop and implement
the first-ever strategic plans for the National Intergovernmental Audit Forum and
the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions have helped improve
the effectiveness of these audit organizations and GAO to work more efficiently and
cost-effectively.
In an effort to identify areas for potential improvement, GAO underwent two peer
reviews in fiscal year 2005. We obtained a clean opinion on our performance audit
practice from an international team of experienced auditorsthe first time that we
have sought such an opinion. The independent reviewers concluded that we have
designed and implemented an effective system of quality controls to provide reasonable assurance of complying with generally accepted government auditing standards, which are designed to ensure that audits of government activities are objective, independent, and reliable. This opinion validated that the Congress and the
American people can rely on our work and products. Also during fiscal year 2005,
GAO received an unqualified report, or clean opinion, on the results of the external
peer review of its financial audit practice. External peer reviews are conducted on
a 3-year cycle, and this is the fourth such clean opinion that GAO has received from
an external peer reviewer since the program began in fiscal year 1996. The external
peer reviewer, KPMG LLP, found that the system of quality control for GAOs financial auditing practice met professional standards and that GAO in fact complied
with the standards.
In fiscal year 2005, we met or exceeded targets for 10 of our 14 performance measures, while setting or matching all-time records for 3 measures. We documented
$39.6 billion in financial benefitsa return of $83 for every dollar we spentand
over 1,400 nonfinancial benefitsa record for us. Our targets for fiscal years 2006
and 2007 will continue to challenge the agency in our efforts to support the Congress and serve the American people. Beginning with fiscal year 2006, we will add
2 internal operations measures to the list. These 2 new performance measures will
assess how well our mission and people are supported by our infrastructure operations staff.
In fiscal year 2005, we issued two products that will assist the Congress as it addresses future challenges. Recognizing the importance and scope of these reports,
we provided a copy to every member of Congress and each Committee, as well as
the White House. Our report entitled 21st Century Challenges: Reexamining the
Base of the Federal Government provides a series of illustrative questions related
to 12 areas of federal activity as well as our perspective on various strategies and
approaches that should be considered as a possible means to address the issues and
questions raised in the report. Drawing on our institutional knowledge and extensive program evaluation and performance assessment work for the Congress, we
presented over 200 specific 21st century questions illustrating the types of hard
choices our nation needs to face as it reexamines what the federal government
should do, how it should do it, and how it should be financed. We also issued our
High-Risk Series: An Update, which identifies federal areas and programs at risk
of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement and those in need of broad-based transformations. The issues affecting many of these areas and programs may take years
to address, and the report will serve as a useful guide for the Congresss future programmatic deliberations and oversight activities. The current administration has
looked to our high-risk program in shaping governmentwide initiatives such as the
Presidents Management Agenda, which has at its base many of the areas we had
previously identified as high risk. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in
consultation with GAO, is currently working to ensure that agencies develop detailed action plans to address high-risk areas, with the ultimate objective, over time,
of seeing these items removed from our high-risk list.
As in past years, during fiscal year 2005, our work covered a number of major
topics of concern to the nation and, in some cases, the world. For example, we reported on the nations long-term fiscal challenges, the financial condition of the airline industry, spending and reconstruction activities related to Iraq and Afghanistan, and strengthening the visa process as an antiterrorism tool. We also examined
the Department of Defenses (DODs) transformation challenges, base realignment
and closure issues, increasing the strategic focus of federal acquisitions, protecting
against identity theft, the oversight of electricity markets, zero down-payment mortgages, and immigration enforcement. We testified many times before the Congress,
contributing to the public debate on a variety of topics that included Social Security
reform, pension reform, postal reform, GSE oversight, wildland fire management,
gasoline prices, the flu vaccine, veterans health care, benefits for members of the
Reserves and National Guard, digital broadcast television, long-term health care financing, passport fraud detection, reducing the tax gap, information security, and

235
a range of financial management and accountability issues. In addition, we conducted a range of work on a variety of legislative branch agencies and projects, including the Capitol Visitor Center, the Architect of the Capitol, and the U.S. Capitol
Police.
This past year we also continued to take steps internally to help us achieve our
goal of being a model federal agency and a world-class professional services organization. These steps helped us to address our three major management challenges
human capital, physical security, and information security. Through the GAO
Human Capital Reform Act of 2004, the Congress granted GAO several additional
human capital flexibilities that will allow us, among other things, to move to an
even more performance-oriented and market-based compensation system. As you
have heard me say many times, our most valuable asset is our people, and the flexibilities granted in this act will help us to continue to modernize our people-related
policies and strategies, which, in turn, will help ensure that we are well-equipped
to serve the Congress and the American people in the years to come. As a result,
we are continuing to take a range of actions designed to modernize our human capital policies and practices. In fiscal year 2005, we adopted a broad pay band approach and a more performance-oriented pay system for our administrative staff. In
fiscal year 2006, we implemented a more market-based and skills-, knowledge-, and
performance-oriented classification and pay system for all of our employees.
My testimony today will focus on our budget request for fiscal year 2007 to support the Congress and serve the American people and on our performance and results with the funding you provided us in fiscal year 2005.
GAOS FISCAL YEAR 2007 REQUEST TO SUPPORT THE CONGRESS

Our fiscal year 2007 budget request will provide us the resources necessary to
achieve our performance goals in support of the Congress and the American people.
This request will allow GAO to improve productivity and maintain progress in technology and other transformation areas. We continue to streamline GAO, modernize
our policies and practices, and leverage technology so that we can achieve our mission more effectively and efficiently. These continuing efforts allow us to enhance
our performance without significant increases in funding. Our fiscal year 2007 budget request represents a modest increase of about $25 million (or 5 percent) over our
fiscal year 2006 revised funding levelprimarily to cover uncontrollable mandatory
pay and price level increases. This request reflects a reduction of nearly $5.4 million
in nonrecurring fiscal year 2006 costs used to offset the fiscal year 2007 increase.
This request also includes about $7 million in one-time fiscal year 2007 costs, which
will not recur in fiscal year 2008, to upgrade our business systems and processes.
As the Congress addresses the devastation in the Gulf Coast region from Hurricane Katrina and several other major 2005 hurricanes, GAO is supporting the Congress by assessing whether federal programs assisting the people of the Gulf region
are efficient and effective and result in a strong return on investment. In order to
address the demands of this work; better respond to the increasing number of demands being placed on GAO, including a dramatic increase in health care mandates;
and address supply and demand imbalances in our ability to respond to congressional interest in areas such as disaster assistance, homeland security, the global
war on terrorism, health care, and forensic auditing, we are seeking your support
to provide the funding to rebuild our staffing level to the levels requested in previous years. We believe that 3,267 FTEs is an optimal staffing level for GAO that
would allow us to more successfully meet the needs of the Congress.
In preparing this request and taking into account the effects of the fiscal year
2006 rescission, we revised our workforce plan to reduce fiscal year 2005 hiring and
initiated a voluntary early retirement opportunity for staff in January 2006. These
actions better support GAOs strategic plan for serving the Congress, better align
GAOs workforce to meet mission needs, correct selected skill imbalances, and allow
us to increase the number of new hires later in fiscal year 2006. Our revised hiring
plan represents an aggressive hiring level that is significantly higher than in recent
fiscal years, and it is the maximum number of staff we could absorb during fiscal
year 2006. These actions will also position us to more fully utilize our planned FTE
levels of 3,217 and 3,267 in fiscal years 2006 and 2007, respectively.
Our fiscal year 2007 budget request includes approximately $502 million in direct
appropriations and authority to use about $7 million in estimated revenue from
rental income and reimbursable audit work. Table 1 summarizes the changes we are
requesting in our fiscal year 2007 budget.

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TABLE 1.FISCAL YEAR 2007 BUDGET REQUEST, SUMMARY OF REQUESTED CHANGES
[Dollars in thousands]
Amount

Cumulative percentage change

Budget category

FTEs

Fiscal year 2006 enacted budget authority ..........................................

Less: rescission .............................................................................

3,217
........................

$489,560
(4,896)

..........................
..........................

Fiscal year 2006 revised budget authority ..............................

........................

$484,664

..........................

Fiscal year 2007 requested changes:

Nonrecurring fiscal year 2006 costs ............................................
Mandatory pay costs .....................................................................
Price level changes .......................................................................
Relatively controllable costs .........................................................
Adjustment due to rounding .........................................................

........................
50
........................
........................
........................

($5,380)
18,469
4,073
7,528
1

(1)
3
4
..........................
..........................

Subtotalrequested changes .................................................

50

$24,691

Total fiscal year 2007 budget authority required to support

GAO operations ....................................................................

3,267

$509,355

..........................

Source: GAO.

Our fiscal year 2007 budget request supports three broad program areas: Human
Capital, Engagement Support, and Infrastructure Operations. Consistent with our
strategic goal to be a model agency, we have undertaken a number of initiatives to
implement performance-based, market-oriented compensation systems; adopt best
practices; benchmark service levels and costs; streamline our operations; cross-service and outsource activities; and leverage technology to increase efficiency, productivity, and results.
The Human Capital Program provides the resources needed to support a diverse,
highly educated, knowledge-based workforce comprising individuals with a broad
array of technical and program skills and institutional memory. This workforce represents GAOs human capitalits greatest assetand is critical to the agencys success in serving the Congress and the nation. Human Capital Program costs represent nearly 80 percent of our requested budget authority.
To further ensure our ability to meet congressional needs, we plan to allocate approximately $17 million for Engagement Support to: conduct travel, a critical tool
to accomplish our mission of following the federal dollar cross the country and
throughout the world, and to ensure the quality of our work; contract for expert advice and assistance when needed to meet congressional timeframes for a particular
audit or engagement; and ensure a limited presence in the Middle East to provide
more timely, responsive information on U.S. activities in the area.
In addition, we plan to allocate about $91 millionor about 18 percent of our total
requestfor Infrastructure Operations programs and initiatives to provide the critical infrastructure to support our work. These key activities include information
technology, building management, knowledge services, human capital operations,
and support services.
PERFORMANCE, RESULTS, AND PLANS

In fiscal year 2005, the Congress focused its attention on a broad array of challenging issues affecting the safety, health, and well-being of Americans here and
abroad, and we were able to provide the objective, fact-based information that decision makers needed to stimulate debate, change laws, and improve federal programs
for the betterment of the nation. For example, as the war in Iraq continued, we examined how DOD supplied vehicles, body armor, and other materiel to the troops
in the field; contributed to the debate on military compensation; and highlighted the
need to improve health, vocational rehabilitation, and employment services for seriously injured soldiers transitioning from the battlefield to civilian life. We kept pace
with the Congresss information needs about ways to better protect America from
terrorism by issuing products and delivering testimonies that addressed issues such
as security gaps in the nations passport operations that threaten public safety and
federal efforts needed to improve the security of checked baggage at airports and
cargo containers coming through U.S. ports. We also explored the financial crisis
that weakened the airline industry and the impact of this situation on the traveling
public and airline employees pensions. We performed this work in accordance with
our strategic plan for serving the Congress, consistent with our professional stand-

237
ards, and guided by our core values (see appendix 1). See table 2 for examples of
how GAO assisted the nation in fiscal year 2005.

TABLE 2.EXAMPLES OF HOW GAO ASSISTED THE NATION IN FISCAL YEAR 2005
Goal

Description

GAO provided information that helped to

Provide timely, quality service to

the Congress and the federal
government to address current
and emerging challenges to
the well-being and financial
security of the American people.

Provide timely, quality service to

the Congress and the federal
government to respond to
changing security threats and
the challenges of global interdependence.

Help transform the federal governments role and how it does

business to meet 21st century
challenges.

Maximize the value of GAO by

being a model federal agency
and a world-class professional
services organization.

Improve the transition from active duty to civilian status for veterans with serious war-related injuries
Address long-term health care financing pressures on state and local government budgets
Identify challenges associated with transferring the Medicare appeals process
from the Social Security Administration and HHS
Improve patient safety at Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals
Improve the security of Social Security numbers
Address the challenges of pension reform
Strengthen the security screening process for passengers and checked baggage at the nations airports
Improve the oversight of Federal Housing Administration single-family and
multifamily lenders
Improve the oversight of electricity markets by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Identify challenges associated with the Department of Energys (DOEs) nuclear facility designs
Monitor the growth in the digital television market
Analyze issues contributing to the declining financial condition of the airline
industry
Improve the management of funds for the global war on terrorism
Increase the security of cargo containers to prevent terrorist activity
Alert the Congress to issues affecting the DODs major weapon systems
Analyze funding options for a new federal foreign assistance programthe
Millennium Challenge Account
Promote government efforts to address threats to the security of the nations
information systems
Strengthen the visa process as an antiterrorism tool
Improve management of the U.S. Coast Guards Deepwater Program
Shape the debate on improving military pay and benefits
Strengthen the U.S. strategic export control system
Identify improvements needed to secure critical IT systems used by U.S. financial markets
Report to the Congress on the 2005 base realignment and closures (BRAC)
defense transformation
Increase the publics understanding of the federal governments long-term fiscal challenges
Implement governmentwide civil service reforms
Oversee federal tax policy
Increase debts collected from criminals
Decrease improper payments made by the USDA Food Stamp Program and
other federal agencies
Manage multibillion dollar IT modernizations and investments at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Office of Personnel Management
Improve agencies strategic purchasing practices
Examine changes in key areas of federal activity that could affect the federal
governments fiscal future
Enhance the knowledge base on comprehensive national indicators
Improve postal operations through reform legislation
Foster among other federal agencies GAOs innovative human capital practices, such as broad pay bands; performance-based compensation; and
workforce planning and staffing strategies, policies, and processes
Share GAOs model business and management processes and other transformation-related information with counterpart organizations in the United
States and abroad

Source: GAO.

238
OUTCOMES OF OUR WORK AND THE ROAD AHEAD

During fiscal year 2005 we monitored our performance using 14 annual performance measures that capture the results of our work; the assistance we provided to
the Congress; and our ability to attract, retain, develop, and lead a highly professional workforce (see table 3). For example, in fiscal year 2005 our work generated
$39.6 billion in financial benefits, primarily from actions agencies and the Congress
took in response to our recommendations. Of this amount, about $19 billion resulted
from changes to laws or regulations, $12.8 billion resulted from agency actions
based on our recommendations to improve services to the public, and $7.7 billion
resulted from improvements to core business processes. See figure 1 for examples
of our fiscal year 2005 financial benefits.

$37.7
$906
79
53
216
96
96
81
91
97
71
67
75
67

151
95
N/A
N/A
91
95
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A

2002 Actual

$26.4
$799
79
44

2001 Actual

98
72
92
96
67
71
78
71

189
97

$35.4
$1,043
82
55

2003 Actual

98
72
90
95
70
72
79
74

217
97

$44.0
$1,197
83
63

2004 Actual

94
71
90
94
72
75
80
76

179
97

$39.6
$1,409
85
63

2005 Actual

97
75
90
94
74
75
80
75

210
98

$39.0
$1,050
80
60

2006 Target

97
75
91
95
75
78
80
76

185
98

$40.0
$1,100
80
60

2007 Target

Source: GAO.
Note: N/A indicates the information is not available or the target is not applicable.
In fiscal year 2006, we will add two internal operations measures to our list of performance measures on which we report. These measures will help us determine how well our internal operations (1) help employees get their jobs done
and (2) improve employees quality of life in the workplace.

Results:
Financial benefits .................................................................................................................................................
Other benefits .......................................................................................................................................................
Past recommendations implemented (percent) ....................................................................................................
New products with recommendations (percent) ...................................................................................................
Client:
Testimonies ...........................................................................................................................................................
Timeliness (percent) ..............................................................................................................................................
People:
New hire rate (percent) .........................................................................................................................................
Acceptance rate (percent) .....................................................................................................................................
Retention rate with retirements (percent) ............................................................................................................
Retention rate without retirements (percent) .......................................................................................................
Staff development (percent) .................................................................................................................................
Staff utilization (percent) .....................................................................................................................................
Leadership (percent) .............................................................................................................................................
Organizational climate (percent) ..........................................................................................................................

Performance measures

[Dollars in billions]

TABLE 3.AGENCYWIDE SUMMARY OF ANNUAL MEASURES AND TARGETS

239

240
FIGURE 1.GAOS SELECTED MAJOR FINANCIAL BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR 2005
[In millions of dollars]
Description

Reduced funding for a missile defense system ............................................................................................................

In an April 2003 report, we stated that to successfully develop an effective and suitable missile defense
system, the Missile Defense Agency must be willing to adopt knowledge-based acquisition practices that have
made other developers successful. Our report acknowledged that the agencys development strategy for the
Kinetic Energy Interceptor Program included knowledge-based practices, but concluded that the agency had
not implemented two important practices: (1) using well-developed technologies during system integration
and (2) fully testing a system before fielding it. In response, the Missile Defense Agency is scaling back development of the Kinetic Energy Interceptor Program until technologies are mature. Over a 5-year period
from fiscal years 2005 through 2009program funding will be reduced by about $5.2 billion, which has a
net present value of about $4.7 billion.
Avoided higher costs associated with a nuclear waste disposal process ...................................................................
In a June 2003 report, we recommended that DOE pursue legislative clarification from the Congress because of a legal challenge that threatened DOEs ability to proceed with its less costly strategy for treating
and disposing of radioactive tank wastes with lower concentrations of radioactivity. DOE estimated that pursuing a more expensive treatment and disposal strategy suitable for wastes with higher concentrations of radioactivity would increase waste treatment disposal costs by $55 billion to $60 billion at its Savannah River
Site. The fiscal year 2005 National Defense Authorization Act contained a provision that clarified DOEs authority to follow its planned treatment and disposal strategy, thus avoiding a more costly process. We calculated that the net present value of the cost avoidance for fiscal years 2005 through 2009 was about $4.5
billion.
Improved the Armys force structure .............................................................................................................................
In a report examining the Armys force structure, we recommended that the Army establish mission criteria
to provide a firmer basis for its Strategic Reserve, Domestic Support, and Homeland Defense force requirements. Such criteria would help to ensure that the Army had the right number and types of soldiers available
for these purposes. Rather than request additional end strength, the Army reconfigured its existing forces
structure. In April 2003, DOD reported that the Army had included force structure changes in its fiscal year
2004 budget, which supported increased units for military police; military intelligence; special forces; and
chemical, civil affairs, and psychological operations. Based on this action, the Army has been able to rebalance its force structure to create needed units with minimal increases in authorized end strength. The
amount shown represents the net present value of the force structure changes over a 5-year period (fiscal
years 2004 through 2008).
Reduced the cost of federally subsidized housing projects .........................................................................................
We determined that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) had not developed the systems it needed to track the status of unexpended balances in its project-based Section 8 housing program
and therefore could not use this information to help manage the program and formulate budget requests for
it. As a result of our work, the Congress required HUD to better enforce the legislative provisions requiring the
recapture of capital funds not being utilized by public housing authorities. In fiscal year 2005, we documentedusing HUD datathat a financial benefit of about $2.7 billion in current dollars resulted from
HUDs recapture of about $2.5 billion of fiscal year 2003 dollars.
Avoided costs associated with higher payment rates at skilled nursing homes .........................................................
In 2002, we assessed the impact of a 16.6 percent increase in Medicares daily rate for skilled nursing facilities on nurse staffing ratios. Our analysis showed that nurse staffing ratios changed little from April 1,
2001, through September 30, 2002the period during which the rate increase was in effect. In fiscal year
2003, the cost to the federal government of reinstating the payment rate increase was approximately $1 billion per year. Since we issued our report, the Congress has considered reinstating the rate increase, but it
has chosen not to, largely on the basis of our analysis. The net present value of the annual cost avoidance
for fiscal years 2004 and 2005 is $2 billion.
Increased tax revenues ..................................................................................................................................................
We reported that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) did not have systems or procedures in place to allow it
to identify and actively pursue unpaid tax cases that may have some collection potential. Based on our work,
IRS has taken action to better assess the potential for collecting unpaid tax assessment cases and has used
that information to better target its collection efforts. Specifically, in 2004 IRS began implementing a sophisticated modeling technology to identify productive and less productive cases to ensure that its resources are
devoted to cases with a higher likelihood of collection and to help prevent premature suspension of collection
efforts. IRSs analysis of the yield on collection cases after employing this modeling in fiscal year 2004 shows
that this yield increased by about $1.8 billion (in current year dollars), or 8.4 percent from the previous year
(fiscal year 2003), without significant staffing level increases.
Ensured continued investment in the General Services Administrations (GSA) online purchasing system ...............

Amount

4.7

4.5

3.4

2.7

2.0

1.8

1.3

241
FIGURE 1.GAOS SELECTED MAJOR FINANCIAL BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR 2005
Continued
[In millions of dollars]
Description

As of 2003, GSA had spent $84 million to develop, implement, and maintain Advantage, a system for ordering products and services online. However, 5 years after the system was launched, only 35 percent of all
government-contracted vendors participated in the program, and agencies were largely using the system to
compare pricing. To ensure GSAs level of investment matched customer needs, we recommended that the
agency develop a business case for a system such as Advantage, and in January 2005, GSA selected a new
business strategy that would significantly enhance the systems capabilities to serve as a broker between
buyers and suppliers and provide agencies with an automated tool for formulating acquisition requirements
and developing requests for quotes. GSA projects over $1.5 billion in financial benefits to result from electronic transactions, spend analysis (analysis of expenditures that shows how money is spent on goods and
services), a searchable procurement data repository, and competitive pricing. This financial benefit has a net
present value of just over $1.3 billion.
Reduced Navy and Air Force appropriations .................................................................................................................
DOD policy requires the Defense Working Capital Fund to maintain cash levels to cover 7 to 10 days of
operational cash and 6 months of capital asset disbursements. Our analysis showed that the January 2004
reported actual cash balance for the Air Force Working Capital Fund exceeded the 10-day cash requirement by
about $1.5 billion, and the Navys Working Capital Fund reported actual cash balance exceeded the budgeted
cash balance by $659 million and $408 million at the end of fiscal years 2002 and 2003, respectively. The
Congress reduced the Navy and Air Force fiscal year 2005 Operation and Maintenance appropriations by just
under $1.3 billion due to excessive cash amounts.
Eliminated the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) Prometheus 1 project ...............................
We issued a report questioning whether NASA had established the initial justification for its investment in
the Prometheus 1 project and how the agency planned to ensure that critical nuclear power and propulsion
system technologies were sufficiently developed to support deep space probes like the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter. We also reported that the approved Prometheus 1 funding profile was inadequate to support the
planned missiona launch to Jupiters Icy Moons in 2015. NASA has subsequently deferred the Jupiter Icy
Moons Orbiter mission indefinitely, reducing the agencys funding needs by about $1.22 billion through fiscal
year 2009; the net present value of this reduction is over $1.1 billion.
Reduced the budget request for a new foreign assistance program ...........................................................................
In March and June 2004, we provided the Congress with information to help it assess the Presidents $2.5
billion fiscal year 2005 budget request for the Millennium Challenge Accounta new foreign assistance program intended to provide economic assistance to countries that demonstrate a commitment to ruling justly,
investing in people, and encouraging economic freedom. Our work provided the Congress with a framework for
identifying relationships and trade-offs between funding levels, compact length, and number of compacts
(i.e., agreements). Our analysis indicated that by reducing assistance target levels, the length of compacts or
both with participating countries, the program could operate at a lower funding level. We also estimated the
effect of funding compacts partly from future appropriations. Our work facilitated the Congresss decision to
reduce the appropriation for the Millennium Challenge Account in fiscal year 2005 to $1.5 billion.

Amount

1.3

1.1

1.0

Many of the benefits that result from our work cannot be measured in dollar
terms. During fiscal year 2005, we recorded a total of 1,409 other benefits. For instance, we documented 75 instances where information we provided to the Congress
resulted in statutory or regulatory changes, 595 instances where federal agencies
improved services to the public, and 739 instances where agencies improved core
business processes or governmentwide reforms were advanced. These actions
spanned the full spectrum of national issues, from ensuring the safety of commercial
airline passengers to identifying abusive tax shelters. See figure 2 for additional examples of GAOs other benefits in fiscal year 2005.

242
FIGURE 2.GAOS SELECTED OTHER (NONFINANCIAL) BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR 2005
Description

OTHER BENEFITS THAT HELPED TO CHANGE

LAWS
Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (Pub. L. No. 108458).

Real ID Act of 2005 (Pub. L. No. 109

13).

Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005
(Pub. L. No. 108375).

Our work is reflected in this law in different ways. In our May 2004 testimony
on the use of biometrics for aviation security, we reported on the need to
identify how biometrics will be used to improve aviation security prior to
making a decision to design, develop, and implement biometrics. Using information from our statement, the House introduced a bill on July 22, 2004,
directing the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to establish system requirements and performance standards for using biometrics, and establish processes to (1) prevent individuals from using assumed identities
to enroll in a biometric system and (2) resolve errors. These provisions were
later included in an overall aviation security bill and were eventually included in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, enacted in December 2004.
We conducted a body of work assessing the physical screening of airport passengers and their checked baggage. We found that the installation of systems that are in line with airport baggage conveyor systems may result in
financial benefits, according to TSA estimates for nine airports. We also
found that the effectiveness of the advance passenger screening under the
process known as Secure Flight was not certain. TSA agreed to take corrective actions in these areas, and the Congress required TSA in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Protection Act to prepare a plan and guidelines for installing in-line baggage screening systems, and enacted measures to promote Secure Flights development and implementation.
We reported on the verification of identity documents for drivers licenses, noting that visual inspection of key documents lent itself to possible identity
fraud. To demonstrate this, our investigators were able to obtain licenses in
two states using counterfeit documents and the Social Security numbers of
deceased persons. The Congress established federal identification standards for state drivers licenses and other such documents and mandated
third-party verification of identity documents presented to apply for a drivers license.
We assisted the Congress in crafting major improvements to a program intended to compensate individuals who worked in DOE facilities and developed illnesses related to radiation and hazardous materials exposure. In a
2004 report, we identified features of the originally enacted program that
would likely lead to inconsistent benefit outcomes for claimants, in part because the program depended on the varying state workers compensation
systems to provide some benefits. We also presented several options for
improving the consistency of benefit outcomes and a framework for assessing these options. When the Congress enacted the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005, it revamped this energy employees benefit program. Among other changes, this law federalized
the payment of worker compensation benefits for eligible energy contractor
employees and provided a schedule of uniform benefit payments.

243
FIGURE 2.GAOS SELECTED OTHER (NONFINANCIAL) BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR
2005Continued
Description

Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act

(Pub. L. No. 108447).

Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005

(Pub. L. No. 108447).

Our work over the past several years has helped the Congress to establish
and assess the impacts of the recreational fee demonstration program.
Under this trial program, the Congress authorized the National Park Service,
the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the
Forest Service to charge fees to visitors to, among other things, reduce the
maintenance backlog at federal parks and historic places and protect these
lands from visitor impacts. Since the programs inception in 1996, we have
identified issues that needed to be addressed to improve the programs effectiveness that included providing (1) a more permanent source of funds
to enhance stability, since the current program had to be reauthorized every
2 years; (2) the participating agencies with greater flexibility in how and
where they apply fee revenues; and (3) improvements in interagency coordination in the collection and use of revenue fees to better serve visitors by
making the payment of fees more convenient and equitable and reducing
visitor confusion about similar or multiple fees being charged at nearby or
adjacent federal recreational sites. As a result of this body of work, the
Congress addressed these issues by passing the Federal Lands Recreation
Enhancement Act in December 2004. This act permits federal land management agencies to continue charging fees at campgrounds, rental cabins, high-impact recreation areas, and day-use sites that have certain facilities. The act also provides for a nationally consistent interagency program, more on-the-ground improvements at recreation sites across the nation, enhanced visitor services, a new national pass for use across interagency federal recreation sites and services, and public involvement in the
program.
Our work is reflected in this law in different ways. At the time of our August
2003 report, the original 1999 expiration date for the franchise fund pilots
operating at the Departments of Commerce, Veterans Affairs, Health and
Human Services, the Interior, and the Treasury and at the Environmental
Protection Agency had been extended three times. These franchise funds,
authorized by the Government Management Reform Act of 1994, are part of
a group of 34 intragovernmental revolving funds that were created to provide common administrative support services required by many federal
agencies. For example, the Commerce Franchise Funds business line provides IT infrastructure support services to the agency. We concluded that
increasing the period of authorization would help ease concerns of current
and potential clients about franchise fund stability and might allow franchise funds to add new business lines, and we suggested that the authorizations be extended for longer periods. The Congress provided permanent
authority to the Treasury franchise fund in the Consolidated Appropriations
Act, 2005, passed on December 8, 2004.
In 2003, we reported that most agencies could not retain the proceeds from
the sale of unneeded property and this acted as a disincentive to disposing
of unneeded property. We stated in our high-risk report on federal real
property that it may make sense to permit agencies to retain proceeds for
reinvestment in real property where a need exists. Subsequently, in the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, the Congress authorized the Administrator of GSA to retain the net proceeds from the conveyance of real and
related personal property. These proceeds are to be deposited into the Federal Buildings Fund and are to be used as authorized for GSAs real property capital needs.
In December 2003, we reported that 184 out of 213 Alaska Native villages are
affected, to some extent, by flooding and erosion. However, these villages
often have difficulty qualifying for federal assistance to combat their flooding and erosion problems. In our report, we recommended that the Denali
Commission adopt a policy to guide investment decisions and project designs in villages affected by flooding and erosion. In this legislation, the
Congress provided the Secretary of the Army with the authority to carry out
structural and non-structural projects for storm damage prevention and
reduction, coastal erosion, and ice and glacial damage in Alaska, including
relocation of affected communities and construction of replacement facilities.

244
FIGURE 2.GAOS SELECTED OTHER (NONFINANCIAL) BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR
2005Continued
Description

Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005

(Pub. L. No. 108447).

To improve the federal governments ability to collect billions of dollars of outstanding criminal debt, we recommended in a 2001 report, that the Department of Justice work with other agencies involved in criminal debt collection, including the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, the Department
of the Treasury (Treasury), and OMB, to develop a strategic plan that would
improve interagency processes and coordination with regard to criminal
debt collection activities. The conference report that accompanied the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, directed the Attorney General to assemble an interagency task force for the purposes of better managing, accounting for, reporting, and collecting criminal debt.

OTHER BENEFITS THAT HELPED TO

IMPROVE SERVICES TO THE PUBLIC
Encouraged improvements in the process
for ensuring states compliance with
education laws for the disabled.

Identified a weakness in Medicares telephone assistance service.

Our report found that the Department of Educations (Education) system for
resolving noncompliance with the Individuals with Disabilities in Education
Act is protracted. We found that resolution of noncompliance cases often
takes several years, in part because Education took a year on average from
the time it identified noncompliance to issue a report citing the noncompliance. We therefore recommended that Education improve its system of resolving noncompliance by shortening the amount of time it takes to issue a
report of noncompliance and by tracking changes in response times under
the new monitoring process. In response to our recommendation, Education
has instituted an improved process for managing and tracking the various
phases of the monitoring process, which includes the creation of a database to facilitate this tracking. This new tracking system will enable Education to better monitor the status of existing noncompliance, and thus enable the department to take appropriate action when states fail to come
into compliance in a timely manner.
In 2004, we found that the 24-hour 1800MEDICARE help line, operated by
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), did not answer 10
percent of the calls we placed to test its accuracy, often because it automatically transferred some calls to claims administration contractors that
were not open for business at the time of the call. This call transfer process prohibited callers from accessing information during nonbusiness
hours, even though 1800MEDICARE operates 24 hours a day. As a result,
we recommended that CMS revise the routing procedures of 1800MEDICARE to ensure that calls are not transferred or referred to claims administration contractors help lines during nonbusiness hours. In response, CMS
finished converting its call routing procedures. As a result, calls placed
after normal business hours will be routed to the main 1800MEDICARE
help line for assistance.

245
FIGURE 2.GAOS SELECTED OTHER (NONFINANCIAL) BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR
2005Continued
Description

Highlighted the need for increased security

at a federal disease research facility.

United States Department of Agriculture scientists at the Plum Island Animal

Disease Center research contagious animal diseases that have been found
in other countries. The mission of the facility, now administered by DHS, is
to develop strategies for protecting the nations animal industries and exports from these foreign animal diseases. In our September 2003 report,
Combating Bioterrorism: Actions Needed to Improve Security at Plum Island
Animal Disease Center, we made several recommendations to improve security at the facility and reduce vulnerability to terrorist attacks. Among other
things, we recommended that the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, enhance incident response capability by increasing the size of the guard force. DHS has informed us that
this has been completed. According to the Director of Plum Island, DHS has
more than doubled the number of guards assigned on each shift on Plum
Island.

OTHER BENEFITS THAT HELPED TO PROMOTE SOUND AGENCY AND GOVERNMENTWIDE MANAGEMENT
Recommended a process to increase the
efficiency of DOD procurements.

Improved the Air Forces oversight of purchase card transactions.

DOD spending on service contracts approaches $100 billion annually, but

DODs management of services procurement is inefficient and ineffective
and the dollars are not always well spent. Many private companies have
changed management practices based on analyzing spending patterns and
coordinating procurement efforts in order to achieve major savings. We recommended that DOD adopt the effective spend analysis processes used by
these leading companies and use technology to automate spend analysis to
make it repeatable. In response, DOD is developing new technology to do
that. According to DOD and contractor project managers, one phase of the
project was completed in December 2004. In March 2005, DOD approved a
business case analysis to seek follow-on funding for developing a DODwide spend analysis system.
As part of our audit of Air Force purchase card controls, we identified transactions that Air Force officials acknowledged to be fraudulent as well as
potentially fraudulent transactions that the Air Force had not identified. To
improve Air Force oversight of purchase card activity and facilitate the
identification of systemic weaknesses and deficiencies in existing internal
control and the development of additional control activities, we recommended that the Air Force establish an agencywide database of known
purchase card fraud cases. In lieu of establishing a separate agencywide
database, during fiscal year 2003, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations initiated quarterly reporting on its purchase card investigations to the
DOD IG for macro-level analysis of systemic weaknesses in the program.
Our ongoing collaboration with the DOD IG on DODs purchase card program confirmed that the Air Forces Office of Special Investigations is
working effectively with DODs IG on data-mining techniques for detection
of potentially improper and fraudulent purchase card transactions. As a result of our work, the Air Force has taken action to reduce the financial risk
associated with undetected fraud and abuse in its purchase card program.

246
FIGURE 2.GAOS SELECTED OTHER (NONFINANCIAL) BENEFITS REPORTED IN FISCAL YEAR
2005Continued
Description

Encouraged the Census Bureau to produce

training materials in other languages.

For the 2000 Census, the United States Census Bureau (Bureau) printed material used to train census workers only in English, except in Puerto Rico
where training materials were available in Spanish. However, to better prepare census workerssome of whom speak Spanish as their first languageto locate migrant farm workers and other hard-to-count groups, we
recommended that the Bureau consider providing training materials in languages other than English to targeted areas. In response to our recommendation, the Bureau is researching foreign-language data collection
methods as part of its preparations for the 2006 Census test and, more
generally, plans to identify areas and operations that will require in-language training materials for areas with very large, new migrant populations
where it will not be possible to hire bilinguals. Moreover, the Bureaus June
2005 request for proposals for a Field Data Collection Automation System
includes a requirement for the contractor to provide training applications
and materials in English and Spanish for the handheld computers enumerators are to use to count nonrespondents.

Source: GAO.

One way we measure our effect on improving the governments accountability, operations, and services is by tracking the percentage of recommendations that we
made 4 years ago that have since been implemented. At the end of fiscal year 2005,
85 percent of the recommendations we made in fiscal year 2001 had been implemented, primarily by executive branch agencies. Putting these recommendations
into practice will generate tangible benefits for the nation over many years.
During fiscal year 2005, experts from our staff testified at 179 congressional hearings covering a wide range of complex issues (see table 4). For example, our senior
executives testified on improving the security of nuclear material, federal oversight
of mutual funds, and the management and control of DODs excess property. Over
70 of our testimonies were related to high-risk areas and programs (see table 5).
TABLE 4.Selected Testimony Issues, Fiscal Year 2005
Goal 1: Address Challenges to the Well-Being and Financial Security of the American
People
Head Start grants management
Medicaid financing issues
Retirement options for seniors
Amtraks Acela train
Postal service reform legislation
Rural housing service
Wildland fire management
Federal oversight of the E-rate program
National air traffic system
Overseeing the U.S. food supply
Providing services to seriously injured
Energy demand in the 21st century
veterans
Social Security reform
Endangered Species Act
Meeting the future demand for energy in
Preparing for influenza pandemic
the United States
Long-term health care costs and
Protecting nuclear material handled at
government budgets
science and environmental sites
Veterans disability claims
Federal real property
Goal 2: Respond to Changing Security Threats and the Challenges of Globalization
Armys modular forces
Federal oversight of mutual funds to
ensure investor security
Acquisition challenges facing the Navys
DODs business transformation
DD(X) destroyer program
Oil for Food program
DODs national security personnel
system
Managing violations of restricted air
space
Cargo security strategies
Protecting U.S. officials overseas from
DOD security clearances
terrorist attacks
Condition of Coast Guard aircraft and
ships used in deep waters
Implementing laws that protect the
security of information
Port security
U.S. passport fraud
Transportation security issues
Tactical aircraft modernization
Acquisition challenges facing the Armys
future combat systems
Unmanned aerial vehicles

247
Goal 3: Help Transform the Federal Governments Role and How it Does Business
Long-term fiscal issues affecting the
Army National Guard travel
reimbursement issues
federal government
Agencies continuity of operations plans
Air Force procurement protests
21st century challenges for the federal
Space shuttle workforce issues
government
Management and control of DODs
Preparing for emergencies at federal
excess property
agencies
High-risk federal programs
U.S. government financial statements
Improper Payments Information Act
Performance budgeting
Gaps in military pay and benefits
Space acquisitions and investment
Human capital transformation at DHS
planning
Reducing the tax gap
DHSs Student and Exchange Visitor
Pricing federal multiple award contracts
Information System
GAOS HIGH-RISK PROGRAM

Issued to coincide with the start of each new Congress, our high-risk update, first
used in 1993, has helped Members of the Congress who are responsible for oversight
and executive branch officials who are accountable for performance. Our high-risk
program focuses on major government programs and operations that need urgent attention or transformation to ensure that our government functions in the most economical, efficient, and effective manner possible. Overall, our high-risk program has
served to identify and help resolve a range of serious weaknesses that involve substantial resources and provide critical services to the public. Table 5 details our
2005 high-risk list.

TABLE 5.GAOS 2005 HIGH-RISK LIST

2005 high-risk area

Addressing challenges in broad-based transformations:

Strategic Human Capital Management 1 ....................................................................................................
U.S. Postal Service Transformation Efforts and Long-Term Outlook 1 .......................................................
Managing Federal Real Property 1 ..............................................................................................................
Protecting the Federal Governments Information Systems and the Nations Critical Infrastructures .....
Implementing and Transforming the Department of Homeland Security ..................................................
Establishing Appropriate and Effective Information-Sharing Mechanisms to Improve Homeland Security ...........................................................................................................................................................
DOD Approach to Business Transformation 1 .............................................................................................
DOD Business Systems Modernization ........................................................................................................
DOD Personnel Security Clearance Program ...............................................................................................
DOD Support Infrastructure Management ..................................................................................................
DOD Financial Management .......................................................................................................................
DOD Supply Chain Management (formerly Inventory Management) ..........................................................
DOD Weapon Systems Acquisition ..............................................................................................................
Managing federal contracting more effectively:
DOD Contract Management ........................................................................................................................
DOE Contract Management .........................................................................................................................
NASA Contract Management .......................................................................................................................
Management of Interagency Contracting ...................................................................................................
Assessing the efficiency and effectiveness of tax law administration:
Enforcement of Tax Laws 1 2 ......................................................................................................................
IRS Business Systems Modernization 3 .......................................................................................................
Modernizing and safeguarding insurance and benefit programs:
Modernizing Federal Disability Programs 1 .................................................................................................
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Single-Employer Insurance Program 1 ...........................................
Medicare Program 1 .....................................................................................................................................
Medicaid Program 1 .....................................................................................................................................
HUD Single-Family Mortgage Insurance and Rental Housing Assistance Programs .................................
Other: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Air Traffic Control Modernization ................................................

Year designated
high risk

2001
2001
2003
1997
2003
2005
2005
1995
2005
1997
1995
1990
1990
1992
1990
1990
2005
1990
1995
2003
2003
1990
2003
1994
1995

1 Legislation is likely to be necessary, as a supplement to actions by the executive branch, in order to effectively address this high-risk
area.
2 Two high-risk areascollection of unpaid taxes and earned income credit noncompliancehave been consolidated to make this area.
3 The IRS financial management high-risk area has been incorporated in this high-risk area.

Source: GAO.

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CONCLUDING REMARKS

We are grateful for the Congresss continued support of our joint effort to improve
government and for providing the resources that allow us to be a world-class professional services organization. We are proud of the positive impact we have been able
to affect in government over the past year and believe an investment in GAO will
continue to yield substantial returns for the Congress and the American people. Our
nation will continue to face significant challenges in the years ahead. GAOs expertise and involvement in virtually every facet of government positions us to provide
the Congress with the timely, objective, and reliable information it needs to discharge its constitutional responsibilities.
This concludes my statement. I would be pleased to answer any questions the
Members of the Committee may have.

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APPENDIX I.SERVING THE CONGRESSGAOS STRATEGIC PLAN FRAMEWORK

COST FOR 50 ADDITIONAL FULL-TIME EQUIVALENTS

Senator ALLARD. Well thank you for your testimony. Total, youre
going to have about a $25 million request, which is 5 percent over
fiscal year 2006 and well look very closely at your request. Weve
got 50 new employees that are coming on. You have about 3,217
employees now, according to the facts that I have here. Now, weve
tried to break that out on the employee costs at $7.5 million. So
I was just doing some quick math here. Thats $150,000 per em-

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ployee. Im kind of curious. Thats not salary. Im sure theres benefits figured in there, and insurance, and other things, retirement
plan, everything else. So I just want to have you verify how it is,
that you come up with $150,000.
Mr. WALKER. Sure.
Let me provide an overview, and Im going to turn to Sallyanne
Harper to provide some additional information, Mr. Chairman,
with your indulgence.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. WALKER. The compensation adjustments are for several
things. Number one, to bring us up to our full compliment of 3,217.
Weve been authorized that for a full FTE level, but we havent
been there in several years. Were now on track to do that and,
therefore, to the extent that we do that, were going to need some
money to be able to maintain that next year.
Second, for pay increases. Our policy is, if youre performing at
meets expectation or better on all applicable competencies and
youre paid within applicable competitive compensation ranges,
youre going to get some across-the-board pay adjustment. In addition to that, youre going to get an additional adjustment based on
how you do relative to your peers.
Senator ALLARD. So the $7.5 million not only includes the new
50 employees, but also there is some pay increase adjustments figured in.
Mr. WALKER. Thats correct, Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. So the $150,000 is entirely too generous.
Mr. WALKER. Thats correct, Mr. Chairman. And then, we have
the 50 employees, not all of which are going to be hired on day one.
Theyll be hired throughout the year.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. WALKER. And depending upon what you finally give us for
a budget, it will determine how many we can hire, if we can hire
them, and when we can hire them.
CALCULATING THE TOTAL EMPLOYEE COST TO THE GOVERNMENT

But you raise an excellent point, which I would like to reinforce.

And that is, were trying to get our employees to understand more
about the concept of total compensation, which you and I have
talked about before. Its not just how much you pay in cash, in the
form of salary, bonuses, incentive awards, and things of that nature, but its also how much you receive in the form of healthcare,
pension, and other benefits. In our budget, the average load factor
that we have to bare directly is about 24 percent, I believe.
However, when you consider the fact that some costs are borne
by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), with regard to
things like the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) cost, et
cetera, the actual load factor is about 31 percent. So for every $1
we pay somebody, they receive compensation of $1.31 because of
other benefits that ultimately, the taxpayers have to pay.
But I would ask Sallyanne if shes got anything she wants to add
on this.
Ms. HARPER. Mr. Chairman, the only thing that

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Senator ALLARD. So, I just want to clarify, if I might, before we
move to the last statement. So, if you pay them a $1, theres onethird of that
Mr. WALKER. Added
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. Added on. It would add on as additional benefits. So the $1 that you talk about in actual cash, becomes $1.32 because of the benefits of the employee.
Mr. WALKER. Two points, Mr. Chairman. For our budget, which
is before you, the $1 becomes $1.24. For our financial statements,
which is important, which is ultimately what the taxpayers have
to bear, $1 becomes $1.31.
Senator ALLARD. I see. Okay.
Ms. HARPER. The only addition I would make, Mr. Chairman, is
that we do disproportionately hire into the analyst core and that
is a higher salary rate in general, than other portions of our budget. So the evaluators, the analysts, and particularly the specialists
are going to have a higher initial compensation rate than people in
the administrative and professional services community.
Mr. WALKER. Its important, Mr. Chairman, to note for the
record, that last year, over 90 percent of the people that we hired
as auditors, investigators, analysts, evaluators, and attorneys had
advanced degrees from top schools in the country. We are hiring
some of the Nations best and brightest, and its very, very important that we be able to compensate them appropriately, because we
are only as good as our people.
Senator ALLARD. Particularly in what youre trying to accomplish, thats your personnel incentive.
Mr. WALKER. Eighty percent of our budget is personnel cost.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. WALKER. And so, if we dont get adequately funded, it starts
cutting into the bone pretty quickly.
EARLY RETIREMENTS

Senator ALLARD. Let me move on to early retirements. Would

you please explain your criteria for approving voluntary early retirement applications and ensuring that areas where there is a
supply and demand imbalance or a recruiting challenge, are not
negatively impacted?
Mr. WALKER. Well thank you for the question and let me also
thank you and your colleagues for giving us the legislative authority that we needed to make more intelligent decisions in this area.
Basically, several years ago, we sought and the Congress gave us
authority to be able to target early retirement offers to a greater
extent, than previously was the case; you also gave us the authority to say no. Basically, were trying to use early retirement offers
to help realign GAOs workforce, to be able to reallocate resources
from areas where we have more supply than demand, to areas
where we have more demand than supply. Were also trying to use
it to try to help with succession planning. Because as you probably
recall, Mr. Chairman, before I came to GAO, we had a hiring freeze
for about 5 years. We were downsized 40 percent. And so, we had
a real gap in our development pipeline and a very high and increasing percentage of people that were going to be eligible for retirement.

252
The bottom line is anybody can come forward and seek early retirement. But whether or not theyre going to be approved, is based
upon what we need from a workforce standpoint to meet our client
demands, and we also consider the performance of the individual.
Were not looking to lose people in areas where we have supply and
demand imbalances and ones that are top performers. Were looking to try to use this as a strategic workforce realignment tool.
Most people that come forward are approved, but not all.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES MARKET-BASED PAY SYSTEM

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now lets go to your GAO pay system.

Youve gone into it in some detail already. What are the major objectives of your market-based pay system and how would you assess your success in meeting those objectives?
Mr. WALKER. There are a number of objectives, Mr. Chairman.
Number one, the overall objective is that we want to be able to attract, retain, motivate, and reward a top flight workforce. Compensation is one element to do that, but its only one. As you know,
Mr. Chairman, those of usyourself, myself, all of us here included, dont come into Government to maximize our net worth. We
come into Government to maximize our abilities and to make a difference. And its not just about the money, its also about the difference that you can make in the lives of others.
But we need to be competitive with those organizations that we
actually compete for talent. Whether that be the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), whether that be the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), whether that be the think tanks, or whether that
be the major accounting firms, whom we actually compete with for
talent, based upon hiring and to whom we lose people. So we wanted to make sure that we achieve that objective. We also wanted to
make sure that we were targeting our limited resources. Because,
we have limited resources. Therefore, we are targeting money to
where the market requires it and where performance supports it.
We want to target our dollars based on skills, knowledge, and performance.
And so my view is, by conducting our first ever competitive compensation study in the history of GAO, which was created in 1921,
we are now in a much better position to provide reasonable assurance that we are paying competitively and allocating our dollars
more intelligently. I think thats not only in our interest, its in the
Congress and the countrys interest.
Senator ALLARD. Yes. I applaud you for those efforts in that area.
Theyre not unique in the private sector, but certainly unique on
the Governments sector.
CHANGES TO THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES PAY
SYSTEM IN THE PAST YEAR

Now, what changes in the pay system have occurred in the last
year? Anything specific that you want to highlight for us?
Mr. WALKER. The biggest changes that have occurred in the last
year, and when I say the last year, Im including this current fiscal
year.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.

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Mr. WALKER. We now have implemented the new market-based
compensation ranges. Thats number one. Number two, we have
also implemented a new system for determining annual pay adjustments for all of our personnel. And number three, the effects of the
restructuring that I mentioned before, the so-called Band II level
personnel, that has taken place. Let me briefly touch on that, as
you know, under the old system of compensation in Government,
everybody had the right to be paid at the pay cap, irrespective of
their performance. It was an entitlement. It wasnt a matter of if
somebody was going to make the pay cap, it was only a matter of
when they were going to make the pay cap. Because until we received an exemption from the Congress, we had to give the acrossthe-board pay adjustment that the executive branch had to give
every year to all employees, irrespective of their performance. And
believe it or not, on the executive branch side, even unacceptable
performers are by law, entitled to that adjustment, which I would
respectfully suggest Congress may want to reconsider. Now, theres
not very many GAO employees in that category, okay? But intellectually it makes no sense.
So we have implemented new competitive compensation ranges.
There were pluses and minuses to that. There were some of our occupations and some levels, where weve raised our pay ranges, both
the cap as well as the minimum, are subject to statutory limits. As
you know, we cant pay what we call a Band III, which is an assistant director, more than a GS15, step 10 level. And so, thats a
constraint.
But below that, its market based and everybody has the opportunity to make the pay cap, but not necessarily the right. For the
higher levels you have to perform in excess of certain levels in
order to be in top end of the pay range. The reason is, because
there is an overlap with the next level of responsibility. Our philosophy is that you can justify paying people at a lower level, who are
really strong performers as much as people as the next level, but
you cant justify paying below average performers, at a lower level
of responsibility, more money than somebody at the next level, who
might be a higher performer would be paid.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
BAND II RESTRUCTURING

Mr. WALKER. Now, the most challenging aspect of this, Mr.

Chairman, has to do with this Band II restructuring. And Ill give
you a few stats to bring it to life. We had 1,238 Band IIs when
we started this process. Thats out of about 3,200 employees. So
you can see, thats the largest component of our workforce. When
we received the results of the competitive compensation study, we
had to make the decision on which one of those 1,238 should be put
in the higher pay range, which gives them a chance to make up to
$10,000 more, and which ones should not. In some cases, individuals may be making more than they should be making, based upon
the market ranges. We had an extensive process that resulted in
everybody being able to apply. Of the 1,238, 794 applied, 757 were
deemed eligible, 409 were initially placed into the higher Band IIB
range. Seventy-eight of the ones who were not originally placed, appealed directly to me. I placed 19 of the 78 into Band IIB. In addi-

254
tion, five, who didnt even appeal to me, were placed into Band IIB
because I modified the relative performance criteria. Therefore,
some individuals benefited from that change, even through they did
not appeal.
So in summary, 433 or 35 percent of all our Band IIs, were
placed in the higher pay range. There are 236 people who, when
we made the decisions based upon their roles, responsibility, relative performance, and potential, did not justify being placed into
the higher pay range, but were already getting paid in the higher
pay range. So they were making in excess of competitive compensation levels. For those people, we did not cut anybodys pay, because
they played by the rules. It wouldnt be right. It wouldnt be fair.
At the same time, if they were already paid in excess of competitive compensation levels, we didnt give them the automatic acrossthe-board adjustments because they were already paid in excess of
competition compensation levels. But we did give them the right to
make additional pay increases, based on their performance. And a
vast majority did get some pay increase even if they didnt get the
across-the-board adjustment. They will, if they end up getting
moved to the next level, or as pay ranges change over time. So
thats where we are. And I apologize, that took a little bit of time,
but its a fairly complicated matter.
EMPLOYEE PERCEPTION OF NEW PAY SYSTEM

Senator ALLARD. Okay. I want to follow up a little more on that.

What is the morale, after youve implemented that system, among
the employees?
Mr. WALKER. We do an annual confidential electronic employee
feedback survey, which well do in July and that will give us more
concrete information on morale. I will give you my opinion, based
upon extensive interaction with our employees, talking to our managing directors, talking to our Employee Advisory Council, meeting
with our employees, and answering their questions.
My view is that there is no easy way to tell somebody that their
pay is in excess of competitive compensation levels. Theres no easy
way to tell somebody that you are not going to continue to receive
across-the-board adjustments that youve been receiving year, after
year, after year. All right. And so my view is that there is a significant percentage of those individuals who were not placed into the
higher pay range, that are disappointed, and Im sure that thats
had some impact on their morale.
At the same point in time, weve taken several steps to try to
mitigate any adverse morale impact. First, rather than only allowing for competitive placements from the so-called lower IIA pay
range to the higher IIB pay range, once a year, were going to have
a second competitive placement process that will be effective near
the end of June. Weve erred on the side of generosity in allocating
the number of competiting positions, so that more people will have
an opportunity to make it. Were going to do another competitive
process next January. So basically, that means within a 12-month
period of time, we will have had three placement cycles, and then
well move to an annual cycle after that.
My view is that while a significant percentage of the people who
did not get placed into IIB and my understanding is that there

255
were 345 people out of 3,200 roughly, who did not receive an
across-the-board increase, because of this factor or because they
were otherwise paid in excess competitive compensation levels.
Obviously, a significant percentage of those people arent happy
with the result. But thats a subset of our workforce. Thats only
about 11 percent of our workforce. I feel confident that not only
was it the right thing to do, but it was necessary to do especially
given tight budgets.
The other thing that we did to try to ease the pain which, as I
said before, was not to cut anybodys pay. In addition we told every
Band II employee who was onboard in January, that they would
have the opportunity to earn up to what they couldve earned
under the old system, which in Washington, is almost $119,000 a
year in cash compensation only, with benefits added on top of that.
They will have that opportunity to earn that but at a slower rate
than they could have under the old system. So were preserving
their ability to make what they could have under the old system
at a slower rate, but were providing them an opportunity to make
more money if their skills, knowledge, roles, responsibility, and
performance justify. Over the long term, this will clearly be a plus.
In the short term, sometimes you have to have short-term pain to
get long-term gain. And thats where were at.
Senator ALLARD. Well, we had a communication from one employee here, who felt that somehow or the other, hed been promised that he was automatically going to get this annual increase
and this particular year, it would have been a 2.6-percent increase.
Do you have any response to that?
Mr. WALKER. Well without knowing the facts, I can say this, I
never committed, nor would I ever commit to pay an across-theboard pay increase to an individual whos paid in excess of competitive compensation levels. I never committed to that, nor would I
commit to that.
POTENTIAL FOR GOVERNMENT-WIDE USE OF MARKET-BASED PAY

Senator ALLARD. Okay. Would you recommend this pay system

be used Government-wide, at this point in time?
Mr. WALKER. I believe there are several aspects of what weve
done, that have potential merit for broad-based application
throughout Government. Although each workforce is different, and
therefore you need to make some changes. For example, I believe
that individuals who perform at a meets expectation level or better,
who are paid within competitive compensation ranges, should, at a
minimum, receive some pay adjustment, based upon how the pay
ranges change each year.
In addition to that, I believe that any additional pay adjustment
that people receive should be based on how they perform relative
to their peer group. So that means, if you do like we do, where we
set the bar high on expected performance and if you hit that bar
for meets expectations, youre going to get something. But how
much extra youre going to get, depends upon how you compare to
your peer group, with the top performers getting more money than
people who are good performers, but not top performers.
I think that framework has a great deal of intellectual merit, and
when Ive gone around speaking to executives and others at other

256
agencies, they have found that it is a possible bridge from a system
where 85 percent of the pay was on auto pilot and 15 percent was
merit based, to one where everything relates to merit, but youre
going to get something, as long as youre a solid performer. But
how much more youll get, depends upon how you do relative to
your peers.
LESSONS LEARNED IN IMPLEMENTING MARKET-BASED PAY

The other thing that I think makes sense is youve got to do market-based compensation studies. Most agencies in Government
have never done that. When you end up going to broad banding,
you really need to make sure you make solid decisions on how
many bands you set up, based upon roles and responsibilities. We
made two mistakes in 1989. Hindsight is always 20/20.
Senator ALLARD. Well, you learn.
Mr. WALKER. Yes. We made mistakes in 1989. Number one, we
combined two GS levels into one pay band that we shouldnt have,
because they were different roles of responsibility. That caused us
to have to do this Band II restructuring, because it was clear that
we had people with different roles and responsibilities. Second, the
agency assumed that the GS pay ranges were reflective of the market.
Now they may or may not have been in 1989, but theyre surely
not today. So when agencies are moving forward, they have to be
careful on how many pay bands they set up, based upon meaningful differences in roles and responsibilities. Then, they need to conduct competitive compensation studies to decide what the pay
ranges ought to be for those bands.
The last thing that I would say thats relevant, is that its okay
to have overlaps in pay ranges. Its okay from somebody in a lower
level to have the opportunity to make as much or more than the
lower end of the pay range at the next level. But in my view, the
only people that you can justify doing that for, are very strong performers. That shouldnt be an entitlement. Because otherwise, you
dont get equal pay for work of equal value, over time. And thats
one of our objectives too, though I didnt mention it before, that I
think is an important principle.
STAFFING UP TO REDUCE BACKLOGS

Senator ALLARD. Last year, you talked about your single biggest
backlog was in the area of healthcare. Have you fully staffed that
area, now?
Mr. WALKER. I would ask Gene Dodaro to look at some data. We
clearly still have a backlog in the healthcare area. But I would footnote before Gene gets into the area, the backlog were going to talk
to you about, is engagements that weve accepted. And one has to
use a note of caution, because there could be demand on the Hill
that we havent received yet and have not accepted yet. In some
cases, people dont send us things because they already know that
we have a backlog. So with that footnote, I would ask Gene to give
you the backlog statistics.
Senator ALLARD. Gene.
Mr. DODARO. Mr. Chairman, weve begun addressing the backlog
issue in healthcare and have made a little progress, but not much.

257
Basically whats occurring there, because of large growth in
healthcare expenditures and the interest in healthcare, particularly
with the addition of the prescription drug benefit in Medicare part
D, the requests and mandates from Congress just keep coming in
at a fast pace. And theres also more interest now in how FDA handles drug safety issues. Theres more interest in bioterrorism concerns and public health preparedness and readiness. So the range
of issues just keeps growing, both in the Medicare program, as well
as the Medicaid program, in public health, and in the regulatory
structure. So we dont believe we can make much more progress
unless we add additional people.
Weve also reinforced a process that weve had in place for a
number of years now, to look at potential mandates. When Congress introduces a bill, theres often a requirement for a GAO study
in there and so, we try to talk to the people once the bills are introduced. If its something that may not fall within our scope of our
responsibility, or be something that weve already addressed we try
to deal with it.
The other big backlog area has been in homeland security. And
of course following September 11, 2001, a lot of concerns about the
areas that the Department of Homeland Security is addressing.
And then, came Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, et cetera. And a lot
of concern has, as everybody knows, emerged about the Federal
Governments response in that area. And so that has occurred in
addition to the continuing concerns about air transportation, railroad security, port security, and all the other issues that have been
addressed. So thats been layered on top and is causing an additional backlog in that area, as well.
Ms. HARPER. Mr. Chairman, to address the second
Senator ALLARD. Ms. Harper.
Ms. HARPER [continuing]. Part of your question, healthcare is on
track to be fully staffed. Their hiring is going very well this year,
so their staff should be fully onboard as we come toward the end
of the fiscal year.
Mr. WALKER. And the third area, Mr. Chairman, where theres
a big backlog, is natural resources and the environment, for fairly
obvious reasons and yourself being from the West, you can appreciate some of those issues.
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY
OFFICES SUPPLY-DEMAND IMBALANCE

Senator ALLARD. Yes. Okay. Id like to have you provide, unless

you already have it with you, a comparative analysis of GAOs current supply and demand imbalance between staff capacity and job
demands of the last 5 and 10 years. Can we do that with current
figures?
Mr. WALKER. Well be happy to provide data for the record, Mr.
Chairman.
[The information follows:]
Question. For each of GAOs 13 mission areas, please compare changes in the supply/demand imbalance between staff capacity and job demands for fiscal years 2006,
2001, and 1996. How does GAO measure supply and demand as it relates to this
issue? What criteria does GAO use to identify backlogs?
Answer. As of the end of March 2006, GAO had 374 requests from Congress that
had not yet been started (defined as the imbalance between supply and demand).

258
This compares to the 361 requests pending at the end of fiscal year 2001 and 349
requests pending at the close of fiscal year 1996.
Pending requests include those (1) assigned to teams but still awaiting screening
at GAOs weekly Engagement Acceptance Meeting, (2) approved at the EAM to start
but not yet begun, and (3) awaiting staff. It does not include work that is contingent
on a future due date or event.
The following table shows the number of pending requests for each of GAOs 13
mission teams as of the end of March 2006 and the end of fiscal year 2001. GAOs
mission teams were organized by the current Comptroller General beginning in fiscal year 2001, so information on their pending requests in 1996 does not exist.

PENDING REQUESTS BY MISSION TEAM

Current Team

Acquisition and Sourcing Management (ASM) ...............................................................................

Applied Research and Methods (ARM) ...........................................................................................
Defense Capabilities and Management (DCM) ..............................................................................
Education, Workforce, and Income Security (EWIS) .......................................................................
Financial Management and Assurance (FMA) ................................................................................
Financial Markets and Community Investment (FMCI) ..................................................................
Health Care (HC) ............................................................................................................................
Homeland Security and Justice (HSJ) .............................................................................................
International Affairs and Trade (TAT) ............................................................................................
Information Technology (IT) ............................................................................................................
Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) ...................................................................................
Physical Infrastructure (PI) .............................................................................................................
Strategic Issues (SI) .......................................................................................................................

2001 1

2006

23
3
8
18
1
15
84
NA
7
17
59
38
12

37
3
21
23
44
13
82
45
12
12
54
22
6

1 Tax Administration and Justice (TAJ) had 69 pending requests at the end of fiscal year 2001 and the Office of Special Investigations
(0SI) had 7. TM was merged mainly into HSJ and SI and 0SI was merged mainly with FMA and the Office of General Counsel.

GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES HIGH RISK LIST

Senator ALLARD. Another area I wanted to cover before we bring

things to a close is your high risk list. Can you give us a rating
of how effective that program might be?
Mr. WALKER. Well Mr. Chairman, thank you for asking that
question. Its a very timely question. I have to give credit to my
predecessor, Chuck Bowsher and the individuals who were at GAO
in the early 1990s for creating the high risk list. Its been public
since around about 1992. Since Ive been Comptroller General, Ive
tried to work with our GAO executives and others, to make it a
much more strategic list. Not just focused on fraud, waste, abuse,
and mismanagement which will never be zero, but also to address
major transformation challenges facing the Federal Government
and to take a more strategic approach.
Im pleased to say, that a very high percentage of our hearings
and a very high percentage of our financial benefits and other accomplishments, are directly related to the high risk list. The Congress is focusing on the high risk list for the most part. GAO continues to focus on it. The administration is now working with us
to create action plans for every high risk area. As you know, the
Presidents management agenda is based, in large part, on GAOs
high risk list and that is not an accident.
Furthermore, GAOs high risk program is being emulated in
other countries, in other States, and localities and is now on the
short list for an Innovations in Government Award from Harvard.
Whether or not well be selected, weve made the short list. This
program is making a difference, and I think its an example of
when youre dealing with an entity thats as vast as the Federal
Government and when youve got limited resources, you need to fig-

259
ure out some way to target. We can target, the Congress can target, the agencies can target whatever resources and authorities
they have, to have the most impact. This has clearly been a valuable tool in getting that done.
I dont know if Gene has anything.
HISTORY AND IMPORTANCE OF THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY
OFFICES HIGH RISK LIST

Mr. DODARO. Mr. Chairman, Ive been involved in the program

since it was created back in 1990 and I can tell you, it has tremendous value over time in sustaining attention between administrations and with changes in the Congress. A lot of these problems require sustained attention over time. And even for some of them,
the areas that are still on the high risk list, even though they have
not been taken off yet, theres been a lot of progress made because
of this sustained attention. Medicare, for example, now has a
means to measure the level of improper payments that theyre
sending out. That didnt exist when we put them on the list back
in 1990 and thats enabling them to measure the degree of progress
that theyre making and target corrective actions.
Tax enforcement, the latest measure of the tax gap had occurred
back in 1988 and because that area has been on the high risk list,
there has been a new estimate made of the tax gap, which is about
$300 billion. In the Department of Energy (DOE) area for example,
on contracting, since weve put that on the list, even though theyre
not taking off yet, theyre now competing contracts, where they had
not been before and other progress has been made.
So its a very, very effective means and I could tell you, when
Dave and I have met with heads of agencies, nobody really wants
to be on the list and theyre making concerted progress to get off.
And they see the benefits of also being on the list, to get attention
to their area.
Mr. WALKER. But let me footnote, Mr. Chairman, in addition to
everything that Gene said, by taking a much more strategic and
transformational approach to the high risk list, I must say, that I
have actually received two telephone calls from heads of agencies,
thanking us for putting them on the high risk list. And let me tell
you why. Because one of the things that weve also done, is weve
noted which items on the high risk list not only require action by
the executive branch, but also require action by the Congress. And
when you look at that high risk list, anything that has an asterisk,
means that both branches of Government have to be involved to
create a more positive future. In many cases, by putting an item
on the high risk list, that provides attention and additional momentum for changes not just within the executive branch, but also
within the legislative branch. One example of that, is a topic that
you talked about earlier, namely human capital reform. We put
that on our high risk list in January 2000. Theres been more done
administratively and legislatively in the human capital area since
January 2000, than the 20 years prior to that. Therefore, it can
make a difference. It is making a difference.

260
CRITERIA FOR COMING ON AND OFF THE GOVERNMENT
ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICES HIGH RISK LIST

Senator ALLARD. Let me serve the role of a devils advocate, we

have two that have been on thereDOE and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) contract management.
Theyve been on there forever. And there hasnt seemed to be any
improvement. Doesnt that diminish the effectiveness of your program?
Mr. WALKER. Well weve had a number that have come off over
the years and weve had some that have come on over the years.
I can assure you, that people dont come off until they earn coming
off.
The other thing that is different here is that within 1 year of my
coming on board, one of the things that we did working with GAOs
executives and also providing an opportunity for comments from
the Congress and the executive branch, we came up with clearly
defined, transparent, and consistently applied criteria for what it
took to go on the list and what it took to come off the list. This
has helped tremendously.
And the last thing I would say is this, the current administration
is taking the high risk list seriously, as evidenced by the fact that
theyre working with us and the agencies to try to develop a specific action plan for each item to eventually get off the list. In some
cases, it took years for people to get where they are, and its going
to take years to get off.
The most prominent example, Mr. Chairman, is that the Defense
Department has 8 of 25 high risk areas individually and shares all
6 of the Government-wide areas. So it has 14 of 25. And in many
cases, Mr. Chairman, its not just because its going to take a long
time to deal with it and there needs to be more attention in the
executive branch, its because there needs to be more attention paid
in the legislative branch. There needs to be more accountability
than there has been, in many regards.
Senator ALLARD. Have we ever had any legislative agencies on
this list?
Mr. WALKER. This list has been geared toward the executive
branch, which is an overwhelming percentage of Federal revenues
and expenditures. And as you might imagine, Mr. Chairman, that
raises certain sensitivity issues, since we are a sister agency to
other legislative branch agencies.
Senator ALLARD. Just a thought I had. Okay. Before concluding
the hearing, I would like to thank your staff for the exceptional
work that they do to support this subcommittee. And in particular,
Bernard Ungar and Terrell Dorn have been steadfast in their commitment to support our oversight of the Capitol Visitor Center.
In addition, Gloria Jarmon and many of your other staff provide
outstanding advice and guidance to the subcommittee routinely
and we appreciate their efforts.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

There will be some additional questions that will be submitted

to your agency for response in the record.

261
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were
submitted to the Office for response subsequent to the hearing:]
QUESTIONS SUBMITTED

BY

SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Question. GAOs budget requests 50 additional full-time equivalent employees.

What is the full-year cost for the additional FTEs, and why isnt this cost made
clear in the budget justification?
Answer. The full-year cost for 50 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff is about $5.8
million using an average annual salary of $116,362 including benefits. Our workforce plan projects that we will end fiscal year 2006 with an onboard strength of
3,350 staff. This staffing level will position GAO to utilize 3,217 FTEs in fiscal year
2006 and 3,267 FTEs in fiscal year 2007.
The cost to support these staff in fiscal year 2007, assuming no other staffing
changes, is included in the budget request as part of estimated annualization costs.
The annualization cost represents the difference between the estimated costs to be
paid in fiscal year 2006 and fiscal year 2007. The annualization cost has been reduced by expected savings from leave-without-pay and part-time schedules, and includes the cost to maintain our student intern and knowledge transfer programs.
The intern program has been an effective recruitment tool for permanent hires, especially in our specialized areas of accounting and financial management. The
knowledge transfer program is a vital tool in our succession planning strategy to
help ensure continuity of operations.
Question. Given that GAOs budget was cut below the request in fiscal year 2006,
how has the agency managed to maintain the fully authorized level of FTEs?
Answer. We expect to be able to maintain 3,217 FTEs in fiscal year 2006 primarily due to lower average compensation costs than estimated. We estimate our
actual fiscal year 2006 compensation costs will be lower than we estimated in January 2005 at the time our budget request was prepared, primarily due to: (1) a lower
on-board strength at the beginning of fiscal year 2006 than assumed in our budget
request; and (2) institution of our new compensation program which is market-based
and more performance-oriented that will result in somewhat lower average salary
growth than originally expected.
Question. Given GAO is requesting 50 additional employees, why is there a need
for $500,000 in additional costs for contract services?
Answer. Based on our current assessment of trends in engagements and audits,
we anticipate an increasing demand for technical expertise. We expect to continue
to rely on external experts and advisors in disciplines related to our work in physical infrastructure, education, pension simulations, health care, natural resources,
economic analyses, and survey assistance. Contract services support congressional
engagements by providing specialized, expert advice and assistance not readily
available from GAO staff and not necessarily needed on a recurring basis. Contract
services are also used when certain kinds of expertise are needed within a compressed time-frame to meet congressional needs for particular engagements,
projects, or audits. For example, we plan to use contract services to provide expertise on a congressional request related to utility tunnels.
Examples of contract services can range from expert advice on specific issues to
an analysis of a particular program. We have found that contractssuch as with
the National Academiesprovide an efficient, flexible vehicle to obtain technical assistance and expertise in highly specialized areas. We have used the expertise of the
National Academies in such areas as: information on trends in printing and dissemination, technologies to protect structures from wildfires, environmental indicators,
air traffic control modernization and privatization, vulnerabilities of federal lands
to climate changes, and the Capitol Visitor Center.
Question. GAOs budget includes $3.894 million in relatively controllable costs
associated with information technology. Please provide a breakout of the projects
and activities that comprise the $3.894 million estimate, and the projected impact
of not funding each of these items.
Answer. In preparing our fiscal year 2007 budget request, we vigorously scrubbed
our requirements and limited the items included in our request to selected, targeted
initiatives that we believe are essential to our ability to maintain our effectiveness
and productivity. These initiatives primarily relate to (1) enhancing critical business
systems and (2) addressing security requirements resulting from recent federal guidance. If funding is not directly provided for the requested initiatives, we may need
to consider delaying these improvements which will only result in increased cost
over time due to future price level increases. Alternatively, we may need to consider
our staffing levels in fiscal year 2007 in order to ensure that we could pursue these
initiatives. The following table provides additional information on the requested in-

262
creases for Information Technology activities and the impact of not funding these
items.

FISCAL YEAR 2007 INCREASES REQUESTED FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ACTIVITIES

[In thousands of dollars]
Activity

Replace GAOs financial management system ........................................................................................................

GAOs financial management system needs to be replaced now and is a priority effort over the next 2
years. Our financial management system is antiquated, is no longer supported by the vendor, fails to
meet current business system requirements, and is in danger of failing. If the system is not replaced expeditiously, we run the risk of being unable to (1) effectively operate our financial management system,
(2) produce auditable financial statements, and (3) meet internal control standards without extensive
manual intervention and support.
In fiscal year 2006, we plan to select a government cross-service provider and begin a phased implementation in fiscal year 2007. The replacement financial management system will provide integrated
budgeting, purchasing, and accounting functionality while enhancing the information available to program
managers, and allow us to meet our goal of being a model agency.
Enhance the Engagement Management and Job Information Systems ..................................................................
In fiscal years 2006 and 2007, we plan to continue the redesign of the Engagement Management System and Job Information Systems. With the integration of existing systems such as the Congressional
Contact System and Staffing Information System into the Engagement Management System, the new system will provide a more robust management tool which will allow one information source and access
point for planning, staffing, and management of GAOs evaluation work. Currently, GAO maintains multiple
systems with similar data, requiring managers to enter redundant data into multiple databases, reconcile
information to ensure its accuracy, and access multiple systems to obtain information needed to manage
and conduct congressional engagements.
Improve IT security and systems .............................................................................................................................
In fiscal year 2006, GAO will relocate its alternate computing facility for disaster recovery and continuity of operations from a commercial site to one that is shared with other legislative branch agencies.
In fiscal years 2006 and 2007, we will continue to implement security features to identify and stop potential hackers and improve the overall security of the agencys information and technology assets.
In fiscal year 2007, we will initiate the transition to Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) to comply with
federal guidance and policy to implement IPv6 by fiscal year 2008. This will require the upgrade of numerous infrastructure devices and GAO applications to ensure interoperability and IT security.
With the completion of installing SIPRNetDODs Internet for sharing data classified up to the secret
levelin the field offices, our efforts will shift to installing access to DODs Non-classified Internet Protocol Router Network system, NIPRNet, in fiscal year 2007. Electronic access to DODs systems allows
staff to obtain information needed to complete engagements without incurring travel costs.
In addition, we will build upon our design of the Hurricane Central Portal to create portals that will
provide a single access point to enterprise information resources, tools, and common applications within
the GAO network. These portals will facilitate timely and effective staff research and access to data needed to respond to congressional inquiries. The initial focus will be a portal for the core business and analyst communities.
Total ............................................................................................................................................................

Amount

1,400

425

2,069

3,894

Question. GAOs budget proposes $3.819 million in relatively controllable costs

associated with building management. Please provide a breakout of this requested
increase, and the impact of not funding these items.
Answer. In preparing our fiscal year 2007 budget request, we vigorously scrubbed
our requirements and limited the items included in our request to selected, targeted
initiatives that we believe are essential to our ability to maintain our effectiveness
and productivity. These initiatives primarily relate to (1) cyclical maintenance identified in our 2005 GAO Building Condition Assessment Report, and (2) security requirements resulting from recent federal guidance. If funding is not directly provided for the requested initiatives, we may need to consider delaying these improvements which will only result in increased cost over time due to future price level
increases. Alternatively, we may need to consider our staffing levels in fiscal year
2007 in order to ensure that we could pursue these initiatives. The following table
provides additional information on the requested increases for Building Management activities and the impact of not funding these items.

263
FISCAL YEAR 2007 INCREASE REQUESTED FOR BUILDING MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES
[In thousands of dollars]
Activity

Amount

GAO Building Maintenance and Repair ...................................................................................................................

In fiscal years 2006 and 2007, we plan to undertake several maintenance and repair projects identified
in our 2005 Building Condition Assessment report. In fiscal year 2007, we plan to continue upgrades to
the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems, replace the cooling towers, upgrade the handicapped lift, and perform cyclical maintenance on the building elevators. In order to ensure the safety of
GAO staff, we could not defer critical elements, such as elevator upgrades.
Increase Security For Incoming Mail And Packages ...............................................................................................
We plan to relocate and consolidate our mail and package receiving facilities to help ensure the safety
and security of GAO staff and assets in the event of the receipt of hazardous materials.
Upgrade Contract Security Force .............................................................................................................................
In fiscal year 2005, we restructured the contract for the security force to upgrade the qualifications for
the security force to Special Police Officers, gradually replacing GSA guards. The restructuring will help
ensure a more professional, secure environment. In fiscal year 2006, we completed the restructuring of
the security force and have attained full staffing with special police officers. The requested increase represents the annualized cost of making the transition from GSA guards to special police officers. If the requested funding is not available, we would be required to reduce the number of officers that we could
support and determine other ways to help mitigate the potential risks to GAO staff and assets.
Integrated Electronic Security System (IESS) ..........................................................................................................
We plan to implement an IESS at GAO headquarters in fiscal year 2006 and expand the system to the
field offices in fiscal year 2007. The IESS will allow GAO to integrate headquarters and field office access
control, surveillance, and alarm systems and provide the ability to monitor field activity from a console in
the headquarters Command Control Center. We anticipate some savings will result from integrating the
field offices and headquarters control systems and less reliance on the Federal Protective Service (FPS) in
the field. The integrated system will allow GAO to comply with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12
(HSPD 12) which sets forth requirements for using government-issued identification, Smart Cards, to permit access to federal agencies.
Security Investigations .............................................................................................................................................
In fiscal year 2006, we will start conducting higher-level investigations on contractors and interns to
meet the requirements of HSPD 12 for the issuance of government identification to allow access to federal
facilities. In addition, in fiscal year 2007, a significant number of staff are due for cyclical updates of
their security clearance which is required to gain access to needed information and facilities.
Upgrade Tax Rooms .................................................................................................................................................
We plan to assess secure space in the field offices and implement changes needed to comply with Internal Revenue Service guidelines for storing tax returns and other sensitive information.
Design For Library & 7th Floor ................................................................................................................................
We plan to redesign the physical layout of our library facility to (1) reconfigure space to improve work
collaboration as we reduce our physical collection and migrate to greater use of electronic resources, and
(2) design additional workspace to accommodate displaced GAO staff when the GAO Building is used as
an alternate facility for congressional staff.
Total ............................................................................................................................................................

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED

BY

922

400

610

1,225

197

225

240

3,819

SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

Question. How many GAO staff did not perform at a satisfactory level (meets expectations or better rating) in 2005 and were thus ineligible for purchase power protection?
Answer. Only 8 staff did not perform at a meets expectation level or better and
therefore did not receive an annual adjustment. In addition, 19 staff did not meet
the relative performance requirements for satisfactory performance and therefore
did not receive an annual adjustment.
Question. What happened to these individuals?
Answer. The 8 employees whose performance was not at a meets expectations
level or better did not receive the annual adjustment or any other salary increases
or performance bonuses. The remaining 19 employees did not receive the annual adjustment, but were assessed for performance based compensation and were eligible
to receive a performance bonus.
Question. Were the affected employees aware of the reasons for being denied their
COLAs?
Answer. Yes. GAO has implemented a market-based and performance-oriented
compensation system and does not provide an across-the-board increase to all em-

264
ployees regardless of their performance, roles and responsibilities or salary in relation to the market. Our annual adjustment reflects changes in the cost of labor and
is one component of an employees compensation. As noted above, some employees
were ineligible for this adjustment due to their performance.
Employees who didnt receive adjustments due to below expectations ratings
were made aware that their appraisals made them ineligible for salary adjustments
or performance bonuses. The 19 employees who didnt receive annual adjustments
due to the relative performance criteria were considered for performance based compensation. All staff can access a performance-based compensation report from a webbased system This report contains information about employees ratings, base salary
increases and/or performance bonuses, but does not provide a specific explanation
of why the amount may be a bonus rather than a base salary adjustment. Various
communications were undertaken to inform staff as to the nature and basis for 2006
salary adjustmentsincluding who was or was not eligible for the annual adjustment component. These included a special Comptroller General televised chat for
which the briefing materials were posted for all staff. A GAO order covering the annual adjustment and performance-based compensation process was issued for notice
and comment. Lastly, a PBC guide with calculation examples was posted on the
GAO intranet. Human Capital Office staff also provided specific explanations of individual salary adjustments to employees upon request.
Question. What affect has the GAO Human Capital Reform Act had on the morale
of the employees in your agency?
Answer. The Human Capital Reform Act (HC II) was passed in July 2004 and
provided GAO with several flexibilities including permanent authority for the Comptroller General to offer voluntary early retirement, voluntary separation incentive
payments, enhanced annual leave for key employees, flexible relocation benefits and
an executive exchange program. In addition, the act authorized the Comptroller
General to establish revised pay retention regulations and to determine the annual
salary adjustment for GAO staff rather than increasing salaries by the percentage
authorized for the General Schedule. The Comptroller Generals authority to establish the amount of the annual adjustment was effective for increases effective on or
after October 1, 2005. Therefore, January 2006 represented the first exercise of this
authority.
GAO conducts an annual employee feedback survey to give staff an opportunity
to provide input on various issues relating to their employment at GAO. The results
from the 2005 survey which was the first conducted since the passage of Public Law
108271 (May and June 2005) show morale improved from the prior year with 71.24
percent of employees agreeing or strongly agreeing that their morale was good. In
the 2004 survey (July and August of 2004), 68.76 percent of employees agreed or
strongly agreed that their morale was good. While we cant attribute changes in morale to this particular legislation or any other single factor, the next survey will be
conducted in the summer of 2006 after the HC-II pay flexibilities have been exercised. Employees responses on the morale question have trended upwards in 2003,
2004 and 2005 and we will track the 2006 responses when the survey is completed
in light of the legislation and other changes that have occurred in the agency in the
past year.
Question. Why did you not allow for a minimum of a two year transition period
before implementing the GAO annual pay adjustment provisions?
Answer. We did. In 2003, as part of our legislative proposal, the Comptroller General laid out plans for a 2-year transition period with increases under the new authority occurring in January 2005 at the earliest. Public Law 108271 was passed
in July of 2004 and provided for implementation of the Comptroller Generals annual pay adjustment authority to be effective for any increases effective after October 1, 2005. In January 2005, GAO adjusted employees salaries at the same time
and to the same extent as the General Schedule and January 2006 was the first
year in which GAO employees received a different annual adjustment than the executive branch.
Question. Why was the restructuring of GAO senior analysts (Band IIs) carried
out?
Answer. As part of our overall human capital transformation efforts, GAO has developed and implemented a modern classification system and a market-based and
more performance-oriented compensation system. The principles that guided the development of our classification and compensation system are as follows:
Enable GAO to attract and retain top talent
Result in equal pay for work of equal value over time
Reflect the roles and responsibilities that staff are expected to perform
Be reasonable, competitive, performance-oriented; and based on skills, knowledge and roles

265
Be affordable and sustainable based on current and expected resource levels
Conform to applicable statutory limits.
The purpose of restructuring the Band II position was to clearly distinguish between the roles and responsibilities of those analysts who are generally individual
contributors and/or sometimes provide overall leadership on selected engagements
and those who are expected to consistently take on a leadership role for a broad
range of engagements over time. When comparing Band II roles, responsibilities and
pay to the market, the Watson Wyatt compensation study validated that these two
roles should have different pay ranges. By better linking roles and responsibilities
to the appropriate market-based pay ranges, senior analysts will be more equitably
compensated.
Question. When did the idea of the senior analyst (Band II) restructuring occur
to you?
Answer. The issue of how GAO classifies its analyst staff first surfaced in 2000
during the development of GAOs competency-based performance system. As part of
the competency validation effort, some Band II employees reported that certain
work activities associated with leadership and the development of staff were relevant and important to their responsibilities and other employees indicated that
they were not relevant. As a result of this bimodal response, these work activities
were not included in the competency-based performance system, but the reasons for
the differing response remained a matter of concern.
In preparation for the development of market-based compensation ranges, it was
essential to address the issue of Band II roles and responsibilities in order to ensure
appropriate benchmarking with comparable positions. The results of the marketbased study, which was conducted from July to October of 2004, indicated that the
different Band II roles should have different pay ranges. In response, the Band II
restructuring effort was formally announced to staff in May 2005, placement decisions were relayed to individual employees in December 2005 and placements actions effected in January 2006.
Question. Did you ever mention the possibility of restructuring GAOs Band IIs
during the legislative consideration of your human capital proposal? Why not?
Answer. At the time of the 2003 hearings on human capital II, GAO had not formulated any response to address the issues associated with Band IIs roles and responsibilities. We had no idea in 2003 what the results, if any, of our market-based
compensation study would be.
Question. What have been the benefits and costs of the Band II restructuring
process?
Answer. There are significant benefits to implementing a modern and credible
classification and compensation system. It supports our continuing efforts to achieve
our strategic goal of maximizing the agencys value by becoming a model federal
agency and a world class professional services organization. The Band II restructuring process was integral to the effort to classify positions to the appropriate levels of responsibility and appropriate market-based salary ranges. While direct cost
savings were not the impetus for our classification and compensation initiatives,
over 80 percent of our budget is composed of people-related costs. Our restructuring
of Band II along with the agency-wide implementation of a market-based and performance-oriented compensation system is a key element in the efficient use of our
budget. Our previous pay system did not result in equal pay for equal work, was
financially unsustainable and harmed the agencys ability to adequately reward
strong performance. The new system will support our efforts to attract, retain,
award and motivate top talent.
However, we recognize that there are also costs associated with any significant
change and the restructuring was difficult for GAO staff, particularly for long-term
employees directly affected by the restructuring. Transformation efforts take patience and perseverance to achieve results and we fully expect that employees acceptance of these changes will take time.
Question. How much did GAO save by freezing the salaries and denying onehalf of bonuses earned of its staff?
Answer. The implementation of a market-based compensation system was not designed to save the agency money. In fact, only 47 staff (2.6 percent) assessed for
performance-based compensation and onboard as of the effective date of these increases received no salary increase or performance bonus this year. Our compensation system is a part of our overall transformation effort whose goal is to establish
modern, effective, and credible human capital policies in order to ensure that GAO
is well positioned to serve our congressional clients, maximize our performance, operate the organization within the resources provided in a constrained budget environment, and assure our accountability and service to the nation not only now, but
also in the future.

266
There were 236 Band II Analysts and Specialists who were placed in Band IIA
and who had salaries in excess of the IIA maximum rate. Under the policy adopted
to mitigate the impact of the Band II restructuring, these staff whose average salary
is approximately $109,000 were provided 50 percent of their performance-based
compensation as a base salary adjustment not to exceed the maximum transition
rate. The transition rate allows all band IIA employees to earn a maximum salary
equal to the maximum rate that these employees were eligible to earn in 2005 as
Band IIs, i.e., $118,700 in Washington, D. C. (Note: In some locations, the transition
maximum was slightly higher than the former Band II maximum due to differing
locality rates.) If these 236 employees had been provided with the 2.6 percent annual adjustment and the additional 50 percent of their PBC, the added annual cost
would have been approximately $882,000.
Question. What is GAOs policy for paying the relocation expenses of an employee
who requests a transfer from HQ to a region?
Answer. GAO does not pay the relocation expenses for employees who request to
be transferred. As required by Federal Travel Regulation 302.11, GAO only offers
relocation benefits if GAO determines that a transfer is in the interest of the Government. GAO always decides in advance of issuing a job announcement if it will
offer relocation benefits for a position. If the decision is made to offer relocation benefits, that notation is made in the job announcement. Employees receive relocation
benefits only if they are chosen for a position which includes relocation benefits in
the job announcement. Employees who request to transfer from headquarters to a
field office (or vise versa) are generally allowed to transfer if a position is available,
however, the agency does not pay their relocation expenses.
Question. In recent years, GAO, as well as other federal agencies, has invested
significant resources to upgrade security. Yet, both physical and information security remain a management challenge for the GAO. Please describe why these areas
continue to be a management challenge.
Answer. The continuing dynamics of information technology (IT) and security is
the primary reason for GAOs management challenge. It is a challenge that is not
unique to GAOall federal agencies are dealing with this challenge. Essentially,
changing security threats, evolving security guidance, and new technologies have
created an environment in a high state of flux. Our experience has already shown
that security designs implemented today may not have the same effect of protecting
our information resources from a newly designed threat, or variant of an existing
threat, tomorrow.
The explosion of the Internet, e-commerce and web-based services, along with the
rapidly expanding presence of wireless and other computing devices, has created
new challenges for protecting IT systems, privacy information and other agency information assets. In addition, the ease with which technology allows the sharing and
transfer of information and the portability of cellular devices, tablet computers, and
PDAs presents ongoing IT security threatssuch as viruses, worms, spyware, zero
day exploits, as well as pharming, phishing and spoofing exploits. Unfortunately,
these are risks and challenges that are not likely to abate as we look forward and
as new threats and the potential for new exploits emerge.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has significantly increased its government-wide guidance on IT, providing more and greater detail in
direct response to legislative direction and the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA). FISMA, in turn, has expanded the visibility of each federal
agencys IT programs and how secure they areand caused an increase in the workload and resources needed to comply with government-wide standards and reporting
requirements. Furthermore, the guidance on implementing and reporting on FISMA
requirements, as well as the related NIST standards and technology approaches
continues to evolve. We foresee an increase rather than a decrease in work directly
supporting these initiatives.
Also, directives to move towards new technologies, such as IPv6, the next generation Internet protocol, may require a significant restructuring of network architectures and network services. (OMB has mandated that all Federal agencies must be
using IPv6 by June 2008.) By implementing some of these new technologies, the existing mechanisms implemented to secure the network and information systems
may need to be discarded and replaced by very different technologies, creating their
own set of new challenges. Significant changes in technology will require additional
resources for training and education of staff to meet the challenge. In the case of
IPv6, it is critical that we develop and implement a sound transition plan to acquire, test and deploy the needed infrastructure equipment to implement IPv6 and
ensure secure compatibility and interoperability with customers, clients, business
partners, and service providers. The full implication of IPv6 implementation from

267
a security standpoint is just now emerging as industry and organizations/agencies
gain a greater understanding of the protocol.
In addition, Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD) 12 and Office of
Management and Budget guidance require federal agencies implement a new federal employee identification standard in October 2006. The technical requirements
to implement these directives are contained in the Federal Information Processing
Standard (FIPS) 201 guidelines. However, the vendor community is still developing
and testing products capable of meeting the new standards and requirements.
Meanwhile, agencies are trying to develop systems and processes to implement the
new guidelines in a timely fashion in the absence of street-ready products.
Question. What further investments do you believe are necessary to resolve the
challenge?
Answer. Due to the dynamic nature of the security and IT environments, there
is no silver bullet to resolve the challenge. By following consistent standards and
best practices, GAO has implemented a defense-in-depth approach using measured
technical security controls to protect our information systems and information at the
perimeter, throughout the network, and at the desktop. We still face mounting challenges from changing technologies and multi-vendor solutions. Most environments
today must still rely on multi-vendor solutions that lack appropriate levels of integration. As the industry matures, we should see more integrated solutions on the
market. GAOs future investments will be in support of our desire to consolidate security solutions to a limited number of vendors providing integrated effective solutions and reporting capabilities. These solutions will require both investments in
technologies and human resources. As GAO moves forward, we will continue to review and update our security tools and approaches to ensure they are the most cost
effectiveand are responsive to ever evolving threats.
Overall, the increasing and more sophisticated outsider threats, together with additional legislative mandates, presage a steady level of spending, at a minimum, for
security initiatives to ensure the safeguard of our information resources and compliance with IT security regulations. While the composition of IT security funding will
likely change to meet new security challenges and government wide requirements,
we dontat this timeenvision overall costs decreasing, particularly in light of the
required move to IPv6.
GAO has several actions planned or underway in the area of physical security
which will help improve our security posture, including an integrated access security system which utilizes enhanced Smartcard technology, more stringent background investigations for federal employees and contractors, and a more robust security force of special police officers. However, given the dynamic nature of the nations post-September 11 security environment, the challenge is continually evolving.
Question. What is the status of your effort to install an integrated access security
system?
Answer. GAO is working with a solutions provider to work through the details
of implementing the new technology. During fiscal year 2006, we plan to establish
an Emergency Operations Center in headquarters as the focal point of our efforts
to integrate physical security issues. This Center will allow us to monitor and control physical access issues in both headquarters and the field. It will also allow us
to reduce our reliance in 10 field offices on local Federal Protective Service Staff and
security forces. We also plan to install turnstiles in the headquarters lobby areas,
implement Smartcard technology consistent with HSPD 12 and FIPS 201, and implement a visitor and credential management system in headquarters. In fiscal
years 2007 and 2008, we plan to phase implementation of the access security system
to the field offices.
Question. What is the status of your disaster recovery/continuity of operations program?
Answer. We have put in place a structured plan and processwhich we test on
a periodic basisfor business continuity planning and disaster recovery. We have
also expanded the capability of our offsite alternative computing facility to ensure
the recovery and restoration of the IT systems that support the agencys business
processes in the event of a disruption. Expanded capabilities include the installation
of additional file servers, operating systems, storage, back-up, data lines, additional
remote access licenses and replication technology to synchronize headquarters production data at the alternative computing site. And, we are in the process of moving
our alternative computing facility from a commercial site to the legislative branch
facility which will save us about $126,000 annually, while providing the foundation
for better coordination with other legislative branch entities. The move will occur
during the summer, 2006.
Question. Given the current environment of fiscal constraint, it is unlikely the
Congress will be able to fully fund your budget request.

268
a. What impact will this have on your plans for an FTE increase?
b. How will this affect your ability to meet the Congress needs for information?
Answer. If the Congress is unable to fully funding our budget request, we may
need to consider delaying some of the requested initiatives which will only result
in increased cost over time due to future price level increases. Alternatively, we may
need to consider reducing our planned staffing level in fiscal year 2007 in order to
ensure that we could pursue the critical initiatives.
GAO already has a significant supply and demand imbalance with 374 requests
from the Congress that had not been started as of March 2006. If we are unable
to increase our staffing, this imbalance will likely continue. We will work with our
clients on the Hill to determine their priorities for our work, but we will obviously
not be able to complete all that they have requested.
Failure to increase our staffing to the requested level would also have an impact
on the timeliness of our work. While we continue to receive good marks on our service to the Congress, we recognize that we could always improve the timeliness of
our work.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

Senator ALLARD. The subcommittee stands in recess until tomorrow, April 27 at 10:30 a.m., in Senate Dirksen 116, when we will
take testimony on the progress of the Capitol Visitor Center construction. Thank you for your testimony.
Mr. WALKER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[Whereupon at 11:32 a.m., Wednesday, April 26, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of the Chair.]

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2007
WEDNESDAY, MAY 3, 2006

U.S. SENATE,
APPROPRIATIONS,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 10:34 a.m., in room SD138, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Wayne Allard (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senator Allard.
SUBCOMMITTEE

OF THE

COMMITTEE

ON

OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE
STATEMENT OF TAMARA E. CHRISLER, ACTING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
ACCOMPANIED BY:
SUSAN ROBFOGEL, CHAIRWOMAN, BOARD OF DIRECTORS
PETER EVELETH, GENERAL COUNSEL
ALMA CANDELARIA, DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
BETH HUGHES BROWN, BUDGET AND FINANCE OFFICER
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Senator ALLARD. The subcommittee will come to order.

Good morning. This morning we meet to take testimony from
three legislative branch agencies: the Office of Compliance, the
Government Printing Office (GPO), and the Congressional Budget
Office (CBO). Each agency will appear as a separate panel. I would
like to welcome all of our witnesses this morning.
I will hear first from Ms. Tamara Chrisler, Acting Executive Director of the Office of Compliance, accompanied by Ms. Susan
Robfogel, Chair of the Board of the Office of Compliance, and Pete
Eveleth as General Counsel.
The Office of Compliance is requesting $3.4 million, an increase
of roughly 11 percent over the current budget, and would fund
three additional employees. The Offices budget is small in view of
its responsibilities. I plan to focus most of my questions on the recent revelations concerning the health and safety of the utility tunnels.
Ms. Chrisler, you may proceed with your testimony.
Ms. CHRISLER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good morning.
SUMMARY STATEMENT OF TAMARA E. CHRISLER

Senator ALLARD. Good morning.

Ms. CHRISLER. As you mentioned, Chairwoman Robfogel and
General Counsel Pete Eveleth are with me this morning. Also joining us from the Office of Compliance are Alma Candelaria, Deputy
(269)

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Executive Director, and Beth Hughes Brown, our Budget and Finance Officer.
And let me take a moment on behalf of the Office of Compliance
and thank you for the opportunity to present to you this morning
in support of our fiscal 2007 budget request. Chair Robfogel and I
have submitted for the record written statements, and we appreciate the opportunity to be able to appear before you this morning
and just highlight some of the items that we believe to be of significant importance in our budget request.
As you know, in fiscal year 2006, the Office of Compliance submitted to you a zero-based budget request. And we thank the chairman, we thank the subcommittee, for support in that budget request. Because of your support, the Office was able to carry out its
mission, as well as improve its inspection program, which is of
great significance.
Again, in fiscal year 2007, the Office of Compliance is presenting
a zero-based budget request. And the request is designed to assist
the Office in ensuring that Congress is a model employer, that the
legislative branch is a model workplace and a safe working environment. And we are asking your support in supporting our budget
request so that we can meet those goals.
Specifically, the Office of Compliance is requesting additional
funding to further a GAO recommended baseline survey. This survey will allow us to gather data so that we know what the employees and the employers in the legislative community know about
their rights, their responsibilities, the CAA, as well as the Office
of Compliance. This information will allow the Office to engage in
best practices, so that we may measure our performance and so
that we may focus our efforts on education and outreach to the
areas that are needed.
If we focus our efforts and provide assistance and resources
where the need is, then we will be able to ensure that offices become self-sufficient and enable offices to know where potential violations are themselves, correcting them themselves, to assure a
safe and healthy working environment. This type of proactive approach will, in the long run, save money. And Senator, it will save
lives.
NEW FTE POSITIONS REQUESTED

In addition, the Office of Compliance is requesting additional

funding for three additional full-time equivalent (FTE) positions,
one being for a program manager-type position to assist with dedicated service to the Offices programs and projects, another for the
accounts payable function of the office, and the other for a management analyst position for the General Counsels Office.
Now significantly, the management analyst position will allow
the inspectors to go about the business of inspecting, which is
where their skills are and where their knowledge is. Currently, the
inspectors inspect facilities. They return to the Office. They input
data. They record data. They track data, which is taking away from
where the inspectors are really needed, out in the field, inspecting
the facilities, monitoring progress and abatement. And we request
your support in the request for this additional management analyst
position in the General Counsels Office.

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I would like to note, Mr. Chairman, that two of the three positions that we are requesting can and will be funded by the Office
of Compliance through reprogramming of contract money. So although we are requesting three FTE positions, we are in the position to find two of those ourselves.
Last, but equally as significant as the other items that I have
mentioned, is the Offices request for additional funding to inspect
the Capitol Visitor Center. Because the center is anticipated to be
completed and opened in the near future, this area will increase
the Office of Compliances responsibility by 0.7 million square feet.
And because the Office is committed to ensuring that this area, as
well as the rest of the campus, is safe and healthy and compliant,
we are requesting your assistance in ensuring that funding allows
us to do this.
PREPARED STATEMENT

Again, Mr. Chairman, these are just but a few items in our budget request that I wanted to highlight and bring to your attention
this morning. I thank you for the opportunity to be able to present
to you. At this time, I would ask that Chair Robfogel be allowed
a few minutes to address the subcommittee. And Chair Robfogel,
General Counsel Eveleth, and myself will remain available to answer any questions that you have.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

TAMARA E. CHRISLER

Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, for the opportunity to
appear before you today in support of the fiscal year 2007 budget request of the Office of Compliance.
Board Chair Susan Robfogel is in attendance with me today to express the support of the Board of Directors for the Offices fiscal year 2007 budget request. Also
with me today are General Counsel Peter Ames Eveleth, Deputy Executive Director
Alma Candelaria, and Administrative and Budget Officer, Beth Hughes Brown.
We present you again this year a completely zero based budget. We hope that the
transparency of the zero based format assists the Committee in understanding from
the ground up how the Office operates its mandated programs in employment dispute resolution, in Occupational Safety and Health and ADA public access inspections and enforcement, and in education and outreach programs. This year, we have
requested a total of approximately $300,000 in additional funding.
2005 marked the 10th anniversary of the passage of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995. As we begin this agencys second decade, we can look back at
much progress, and some rough patches along the way. In February, 2004, the Government Accountability Office issued its major Report Office of Compliance: Status
of Management Control Efforts to Improve Effectiveness GAO04400. At approximately the same time, the Office issued its first comprehensive Strategic Plan for
fiscal years 20042006. Both of these documents, and our strides in implementing
them since 2004, reflect the continuing improvement in the Offices focus on its core
missions, and its growing engagement with Congress and legislative branch agencies in collaborative initiatives to enhance our services in the mandated areas of dispute resolution, safety and health enforcement, and education and outreach to our
regulated community.
Recently, the Office formally adopted interim performance measures for fiscal
year 2006, after extensive stakeholder consultationsincluding with the staff of this
Committee. Such performance measures represent another step toward the best
practices in strategic planning and management controls which GAO challenged this
Office to achieve. We are now also fully engaged in two other strategic initiatives:
the preparation of our next Strategic Plan, which will guide the Office in fiscal year
2007 and beyond; and a complete Human Capital Review, which is intended to result in a position classification, pay banding, and possible pay for performance structure for the Office. The Offices budget request is designed to further the goals of
our strategic plan.

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As recommended in the GAO Report and reflected in our Strategic Plan, we continue to shift our focus in providing all our services to a more interactive approach,
enabling regulated employers to achieve greater voluntary compliance with the varied requirements of the Congressional Accountability Act. Legislative branch agencies are faced with many employment, security and safety challenges. Our primary
mission is to advance safety, health and workplace rights for employees and employers of the legislative branch, as mandated by the Act. We strive toward that goal
with just 17 full time equivalent (FTE) positions and a current budget of about $3.1
million.
As this agency continues to implement the recommendations of the GAO Report,
and the goals and performance measures of our Strategic Plan, we meet new operational challenges as we become better at what we do. We have carefully prioritized
our needs, and limited our requested enhancements to meet only those challenges
which handicap our ability to make broader progress at this point in our development. This morning, I will highlight a few of those requests.
DISPUTE RESOLUTION

The Offices day-to-day employment dispute resolution function involves controversies under ten different laws, everything from alleged discrimination to the alleged
failure to pay required overtime. This dispute resolution activity remains largely unnoticed because of the confidential nature of the counseling, mediation and hearing
processes conducted by the Office. Hundreds of disputes in nearly all legislative
branch agencies, as well as in offices of Members and committees of both chambers
have quietly been addressed through the administrative dispute resolution system
since 1995. The assistance to employing offices and employees provided by this discreet service is perhaps one of the great untold success stories of the past decade
regarding our contribution to the quality of Congresss internal operations.
We are, however, operating with an employment dispute resolution electronic case
tracking system which was installed at the agencys inception in 1996. This antiquated system (which is entirely different from the Occupational Safety and Health
inspection tracking system which this Committee authorized last year) is very hard
to use, and is no longer compatible with our other operating systems. We have explored whether it would be cost effective to upgrade this system, and have been told
by experts that it is cheaper to replace it. We are requesting funds to implement
that recommendation.
SAFETY AND HEALTH ENFORCEMENT

GAOs 2004 Report found that In contrast to most other CAA requirements, OOC
is not fully in compliance with the CAA requirement that it conduct periodic inspections of all facilities of the agencies covered by the provision. GAO also found a
dramatic increase in the number of health and safety inspections requested by employing offices and covered employees, and observed that the Offices resources
have not kept pace with this growth. We thank this Committee for its positive response to GAOs finding.
For the current fiscal year, the Office received a significant increase in OSH inspection and enforcement funding to enable us for the first time to substantially
comply with the Acts mandate that this agency complete a comprehensive safety
and health inspection of the entire Capitol Hill campus during each Congress. The
Office is now well along in this definitive effort to establish the required authoritative and comprehensive OSH base line for all 17 million square feet of covered
space in the D.C. metro area. General Counsel Eveleth and I are pleased to report
to you that as of today, the agency is on track to complete that biennial inspection
by the end of the 109th Congress. Inspection of 100 percent of the campus is one
of our recently adopted performance measures. Thanks to you, we are better able
to help the Capitol Hill campus become safer and healthier much faster than otherwise would have been possible.
As the Office gains experience with this much more intense and efficient inspection regimen, it has become clear that the down time our inspectors are currently
spending back in the office doing administrative tasks can be more cheaply and efficiently performed by a lower cost management analyst, thus freeing up the inspectors to spend more time in the field. We expect that the cost of this FTE will be
substantially offset by increased efficiencies in the use of inspector time, and we
plan to reprogram contractor funds to fund the salary of this position. As several
of our performance measures relate to increased inspection efficiencies, we have requested that you approve an additional position for this purpose.

273
The impact of the opening of the Capitol Visitor Center during fiscal year 2007
will add approximately 0.7 million square feet to our inspection load. Thus, we are
seeking funding for that added activity.
EDUCATING OUR CONSTITUENCY

The Office is mandated by Congress to carry out a program of education for

Members of Congress and other employing authorities of the legislative branch of
the Federal Government respecting the laws made applicable to them and a program to inform individuals of their rights under laws made applicable to the legislative branch of the Federal Government. . . . 2 U.S.C. 1381(h)(1). While the Office
continues to carry out this core mandate of the Act through various educational and
outreach activities, we have maximized our limited capacity in this area.
A key obstacle to greater educational effectiveness is our lack of comprehensive
data regarding how and where we need to focus our efforts. A primary agency performance measurement tool recommended in the GAO Report is the establishment
of a knowledge baseline regarding the Congressional communitys understanding of
the Act and of the Offices role in enforcing it. Such a baseline can best be established through a survey. The survey data will help us better target our education
efforts and measure results. We are seeking funding for the undertaking of survey
activities to establish the baseline against which we will measure our success in
achieving our statutory mandates.
MANAGEMENT SUPPORT

The Office of Compliance makes extensive use of service vendors and personal
services contractors to provide many of our vital functions, including employment
dispute resolution and OSH inspections. In general, this practice provides significant cost savings and allows this small agency to maintain capacities on an asneeded basis. However, some core internal control functions are currently also
under-served or contracted out due to our limited FTE authorization, which at 17
is two less than the agency was authorized in fiscal year 1998.
The Office has just two FTEs dedicated to all IT, HR, general administrative support and fiscal management functions. This situation has resulted in inefficiencies,
work load overages, and the necessity to contract out core functions, such as accounts payable. Accounting staff is necessary to ensure that a separation of functions can be maintained in our fiscal management. We are requesting one analyst
FTE to address our HR and program analyst deficit, and an accounting technician
FTE to bring our basic accounting and other fiscal responsibilities on staff. The cost
of these FTEs will be partially offset by a reduction in contractor expenses.
CONCLUSION

There are a number of other requests in our budget submission which we commend for your consideration. On behalf of the Board of Directors, the appointees and
the entire staff of the Office of Compliance, I again thank you for the Committees
support of the efforts of this agency; I recommit to you that we are dedicated to
using every dollar of taxpayer money carefully and efficiently; and I respectfully request that the Committee respond favorably to the Offices fiscal year 2007 budget
request. We will be happy to respond to any questions which you may have.
APPENDIXTHE CONGRESSIONAL MANDATE

The Office of Compliance was established to administer and enforce the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995, 2 U.S.C. 1301, et seq. The Congressional Accountability Act applies 12 workplace, employment, and safety laws to Congress and
other agencies and Instrumentalities of the legislative branch. These laws include:
the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970; the Federal Service Labor Management Relations Act; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Americans with
Disabilities Act; the Rehabilitation Act of 1970; the Family Medical Leave Act; the
Fair Labor Standards Act; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Worker
Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act; the Employee Polygraph Protection
Act; and veterans employment and reemployment rights at Chapter 43 of Title 38
of the U.S. Code. The Act was amended in 1998 to apply the Veterans Employment
Opportunities Act.
Currently, the Office has regulatory responsibility for employers in the legislative
branch employing approximately 30,500 employees. The Office is also charged by
the Act to make recommendations to Congress as to whether additional employment
and public services and accommodations laws should be made applicable to the employing offices within the legislative branch.

274
Under the direction of the Executive Director, the Office administers a dispute
resolution system to resolve disputes and complaints arising under the Act, and carries out an education and training program for the regulated community on the
rights and responsibilities under the Act. The General Counsel has independent investigatory and enforcement authority with respect to certain of the laws administered under the Act and represents the Office in all judicial proceedings under the
Act.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND STAFF

The Office has a five-member, non-partisan Board of Directors appointed by the

Majority and Minority Leaders of both houses of Congress. The Board appoints the
executive leadership of the agency, acts as an adjudicative body in reviewing appeals by parties aggrieved by decisions of Hearing Officers on complaints filed with
the Office, and advises Congress on needed changes and amendments to the Act.
The Board members, who serve five-year terms, come from across the United States,
and are chosen for their expertise in the laws administered under the Act. In a
major vote of confidence in the current leadership of the Office, Congress enacted
legislation in 2004 and in 2005 granting authority to the bipartisan Congressional
leadership to appoint the current chair and members of the Board to a second 5 year
term in office, and to the Board to appoint the executive leadership of the Office
to second five year terms.
The Office of Compliance currently has 17 full-time employees and pays the parttime Board members on a when-actually-employed basis. Our staff performs a
multiplicity of functions, including: administrative dispute resolution, occupational
safety and health and disability access enforcement, labor relations regulatory activity, education, Congressional relations, professional support for the Board of Directors, and general administrative and fiscal functions. The Office performs the functions of multiple agencies in and for the Executive Branch, including but not limited
to, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Occupational Safety and
Health Administration, Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, and
the Federal Labor Relations Authority. The Office regularly contracts for the parttime, as-needed services of approximately 30 other individuals as mediators, Hearing Officers, and safety and health investigators. The Offices senior full-time safety
and health investigator is on permanent detail from the Department of Labors Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
BIENNIAL OSHADA INSPECTION

In the fiscal year 2006 budget, Congress provided substantial additional funding
to permit the Office of the General Counsel to meet the statutory Occupational Safety and Health mandate to examine all legislative branch facilities during the 109th
Congress biennial cycle of inspections. The total amount of covered premises in the
metropolitan Washington region is in excess of 17 million square feet. The Office
is intensely engaged in the implementation of the biennial inspection regimen, and
continues to carry out the GAO recommendation that the inspection program include interactive and collegial involvement on the part of the affected agencies.
As part of the revamped inspection regimen, the Office is now utilizing a recently
installed electronic tracking and report system for OSH inspections and enforcement, and has adopted a widely recognized risk assessment code (RAC) to classify
all hazards found to exist in the ongoing inspections.
MORE CONSULTATION AND COLLEGIALITY

GAO also recommended that OOC should establish congressional and agency
protocols . . . between the Congress, legislative branch agencies, and OOC on what
can be expected as OOC carries out its work. (GAO Report, Introduction) The Office
of Compliance continues to develop new approaches to OSH and other regulatory
activities which involve greater consultation, coordination, and transparency in dispute resolution, and in investigatory and enforcement activity. This effort is time
intensive and requires partnerships with employing offices and employees and a
concomitant educational and training initiative to improve management and employee understanding of best practices. These activities are focused on fostering
more cooperative efforts at achieving compliance with standards but they do not negate the statutory mandate to enforce the law.
STRAINS ON AGENCY RESOURCES

In last years budget request, this Office highlighted the drastic under-resourcing
of the agencys OSH inspection and enforcement responsibility. We thank the Com-

275
mittee for its leadership in significantly improving the level of resources we are able
to employ in meeting the OSH challenge.
In this budget, the problems are less evident to outside stakeholders, but no less
urgent with regard to the Offices ability to carry out its mission. We are requesting
three FTEs to address chronic major shortfalls in our administrative support capabilities in IT and equipment maintenance, fiscal controls; and to address the emerging need for more administrative support for the much larger OSH inspection activities. The Office of Compliance continues to operate with three fewer FTEs than it
was provided when the agency began operations in 1996. However, our responsibilities and statutory missions have not diminished. We respectfully submit that restoration of three FTEs will greatly assist the Office in continuing to address the
recommendations of the 2004 GAO Report, and better serving our customer community.
We are also asking for funds to better focus our education and outreach efforts,
and a number of other inexpensive enhancements to many of our program efforts
which nevertheless provide significant added value to the quality of workplace life
on Capitol Hill.

Senator ALLARD. Ms. Robfogel.

SUMMARY STATEMENT OF SUSAN ROBFOGEL

Ms. ROBFOGEL. I will emphasize only one point because I know

there are, as you say, there are many questions that you have with
respect to some of the safety violations that have been discussed
so extensively in the last few weeks.
I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for the support
that you provided to the Office during the 2006 year. As a result
of the increased funding that we received last year, the Office has
been able to engage in a much rigorous inspection of the entire congressional campus. And although we are only 63 percent completed
with respect to our inspection with the 109th Congress, we have already identified 10,000 safety violations.
PREPARED STATEMENT

What our emphasis needs to be as we go forward is to be sure

that we have the funding to deal with abatement and enforcement
and to help the various constituents who are part of the congressional campus to keep their building safe, and to learn how to recognize safety violations when they see them.
We want to keep doing the job that we are trying to do, to keep
people who work on the Hill safe and to keep visitors who come to
the Hill safe. You have gone a long ways toward helping us do our
job. We need a little bit more support going forward.
Thank you.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

SUSAN ROBFOGEL

Good morning, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee. I am Susan

Robfogel. As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance, I am honored to be here today to join Tamara Chrisler in testifying on the Offices fiscal year
2007 budget request. I want to take this opportunity to express my appreciation and
that of the rest of the Board for the increased funding appropriated to the Office
of Compliance in fiscal year 2006 for purposes of completing a comprehensive safety
and health biennial inspection. I can assure you that the Office is on track with this
vital effort.
Mr. Chairman, the Board would like to commend the work of the entire staff in
achieving so many goals in the past few years. We now have a Strategic Plan with
a performance line of sight to individual work plans; we have established or are developing protocols to enable us better to partner with the agencies for which we
have employment law and safety and health jurisdiction; and we have worked with

276
this Committee, and GAO to improve and systematize our business practices in
budget, performance measures, and strategic planning.
This record of improvement is the result of the hard work and dedication of the
four statutory officers who are appointed by the Board, and the dedicated staff they
have assembled. While the Board wholeheartedly supports all of the budget requests, we wish to underscore the need which the agency has to increase its FTE
complement to 20. Right now the FTE complement of 17 is two less than the 19
the Office was afforded in fiscal year 1998. Over the past several years, the agency
has concentrated its available resources on enhancing its service delivery, particularly in the OSH area. Consequently, there is a compelling need for basic operational support staff. I can assure you that the Office of Compliance will continue
to make the most efficient use of every dollar which is appropriated by this Committee.
We are available to address any questions.

Senator ALLARD. Thank you for your testimony.

I would like to follow up on your request. You have requested an
11-percent increase over the current year. You gave us some brief
explanation. I would like to go over and make sure I understand
that.
Ms. CHRISLER. Yes.
Senator ALLARD. Those increases are in the area of three additional full-time employees. It looks to be pretty much on the management side, a program manager, an accounts payable technician,
and then a management analyst. Is that correct?
Ms. CHRISLER. That is correct, for the General Counsels Office.
Senator ALLARD. And what is your priority on those? Did you
give those in the way of priority to us?
Ms. CHRISLER. Thank you. The management analyst position is
a significant position. And that is a very significant position.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Ms. CHRISLER. The accounts payable position, what we have now,
Senator, is a very small human resource, as well as budget staff,
extremely small. And we are contracting some of those services out
now, which are core functions of our office. And to, frankly, be more
efficient and more effective in managing our office, that accounts
payable position is significant, as well.
Senator ALLARD. I see.
Ms. CHRISLER. The program manager-type position for our office
would be split between managing programs, managing projects, as
well as carrying out some of the human resource functions in the
Office, as well. So although all three positions are desperately
needed by the Office, we are able to fund two of them.
Senator ALLARD. Well, I know it is difficult to set priorities, and
that is a tough question. I respect and thank you for your straightforward response.
Ms. CHRISLER. Thank you, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Now the Capitol Visitor Center, that is another
reason for that increase?
Ms. CHRISLER. Yes, it is, Senator.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Now, are there any other factors that I
did not pick up on in your testimony or maybe you did not have
in your testimony that is contributing to the 11-percent increase
that you are requesting?
Ms. CHRISLER. There are a number of items that we are requesting assistance for. The main ones are for the full-time equivalent
positions, the baseline survey, the case tracking. What is signifi-

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cant and of main importance for us is to be able to maintain our
progress that we have made so far. The Office wants to be able to
sustain itself. And the Office is requesting assistance to be able to
grow with the surrounding circumstances.
There are many circumstances that are getting greater attention
and requiring greater responsibility and greater inspection and
management by our Office. And we are asking your support in general for us to be able to move with and maintain the progress that
we have made and also continue to make progress, because as the
campus moves and grows and as incidents and issues and circumstances come to the attention of the Office, we want to be in
the position to provide the services and resources that are necessary.
BIENNIAL SAFETY AND HEALTH INSPECTIONS

Senator ALLARD. How would you evaluate your biennial health

and safety inspection of the Capitol, including the House and Senate facilities?
Ms. CHRISLER. The progress on that is going very well. As Chair
Robfogel mentioned, we are 63 percent into that process. And along
with me this morning is General Counsel Eveleth, who maintains
overall management of that program. And I would like to defer to
him to add additional comments to that question.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. Yes, Mr. Chairman. We have made significant
progress over the past years as a result of the additional funding
that we received for fiscal year 2006. In our 108th Congress biennial inspection, we were only able to cover 25 percent of the square
footage, that is, of the approximately 16 million-plus square footage. There will be an additional 700,000 once the visitor center
comes online. But we were only able to do 25 percent in the last
biennial.
At this point, as has been said, we have covered 63 percent. And
we anticipate completing the biennial inspection for the 109th Congress by September of this year. So that is a big step forward.
Senator ALLARD. It is.
Mr. EVELETH. As a result of that, we have identified, as was indicated, something like 10,000 violations, as opposed to our last inspection, where we discovered 2,600 violations. That number, in
turn exceeded the biennial inspection for the 107th Congress where
we identified something like 360 violations. That does not mean it
is because things have gotten worse. It is just that we are doing
a much more thorough baseline inspection.
Senator ALLARD. And under those violations, have you tried to
break them down into categories?
FINDINGS BY RISK ASSESSMENT CODE

Mr. EVELETH. I can tell you, I can break it down. We have a system which we call a RAC system. That is a risk assessment code
system. This is common in industry, and in other departments.
And ours is based on the Department of Defenses risk assessment
code system.
It is a combination of rating each hazard during the inspection
according to the risk of injury or illness or potential of death. It de-

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pends upon a combination of the probability that an employee
could be hurt and the severity of the illness. The RACs are based
on that. And the most serious RAC rating would be a risk one, and
that goes to a risk five, which is de minimis.
Now we ourselves do not count risks that are de minimis. We
just do RAC one through four. And so I can tell you
Senator ALLARD. The 10,000 only includes one through four. It
does not include five?
Mr. EVELETH. No. We do not even record de minimis ones.
Senator ALLARD. So the 10,000 would get you the RAC one, two,
three, and four.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. And of the RACs, there are 20this is as
of today or last weekwe discovered 20 RAC onesthose are the
most serious1,655 RAC twos; 7,681 RAC threes; and 759 RAC
fours.
Senator ALLARD. What would be an example of a RAC four?
Mr. EVELETH. A RAC four would be such things aslet us see.
I have some examples of that. There may be some electrical cord
hazards, some ladder hazards, broken ladder, some fall protection
hazards. There might be a problem with fire extinguishers, that
they are not currently inspected. There might be an issue about
storage shelving hazards, overloaded shelves or something.
Senator ALLARD. I have a pretty good feel where that is.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. And a RAC one example would be?
Mr. EVELETH. Well, a RAC one would beas you know, the tunnels would be an example of that, where there would be falling concrete, where there is asbestos, and things of that nature. A lot of
electrical issues would also be a RAC onewhere a worker could
be exposed to an electrical hazard.
Senator ALLARD. Bare wires or something like that.
Mr. EVELETH. Bare wires and so forth.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. And when we do the RACs, it is not a one-sizefits-all kind of RAC. In other words, an electrical hazard in one situation might be a RAC one and another might be a RAC four, depending on the circumstances. For example, if there were a wet
floor or something, that would heighten the risk, if someone were
to be shocked.
FIRST OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE COMPLAINT UNDER THE OCCUPATIONAL
SAFETY AND HEALTH ACT

Senator ALLARD. Now I would like to proceed to one of the RAC

ones, the one that has the most publicity at this point in time. That
is the complaint that you filed with the Architect of the Capitol regarding a condition of the Capitol complex utility tunnels. Now this
is the first time that OOC has filed a complaint under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. You have filed other complaints, but
this is the first one under that act.
Mr. EVELETH. That is correct.
Senator ALLARD. Why did the OOC believe it necessary to file a
complaint?
Mr. EVELETH. Well, my predecessor, as you know, issued a citation back in the year 2000. And when I came on board in 2003, my

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intent was to determine which were the most hazardous areas. And
the first areas that we began to look at were areas that had not
been inspected at all in the past. And I wanted to be sure what was
going on there.
And in 2005, we began, when we had additional resources that
we did not have before, we began our inspection of the Capitol
Power Plant tunnels and the Capitol Power Plant itself, because
that was an area where a citation had been issued previously. And
what we discovered in the course of that, that while some work had
been done, in effect very little work had been done. That is to say,
in 2000 a contractor that had been inspecting the tunnels under
the engagement of the Architect of the Capitolthat contractor
identified areas within the tunnels that needed to be fixed within
1 year, immediate attention, as well as other ones that had to be
done within 5 years.
What we discovered in our inspection wasand they were also
required to monitor the progress of those things, because they continued to deteriorate. Those tunnels are very hot. They go up to
130 degrees, some of the tunnels, and they are also damp. And that
combination causes rust. And the rust in the rebar that is under
the cement, it expands as a result of rusting. And whole sections
can and have delaminated. That is, they have fallen down. And
smaller areas have spalled. So that is a very serious situation. And
the contractor said, You need to do these things within a certain
period of time.
Senator ALLARD. Is that what the original contractor said in
2000?
Mr. EVELETH. That is what the original contractor said, right,
back in 2000. Our citation back in 2000 basically tracked what that
contractor had found and said to fix these issues. Continue to monitor, fix the safety communication system so that people within the
tunnels can notify the people outside the tunnels, if they have to
get out, if there is an emergency, and also to assure that there
were sufficient number of egress points so they could be rescued in
the event of a collapse or injury or what have you.
And when we went through the tunnels in June 2005, we discovered that the communications system, although it had initially
been improved, was not working properly. And not all the areas
were covered by the communications system.
A number of the egress points had been welded shut during past
years. And there were notthere was an insufficient number of
egress points. And finally, they had not completed the repairs or
made any attempt to do the repairs in most of the areas that had
been identified by the contractor.
We met with the Architect of the Capitol, as we do monthly, that
is to say, representatives of the Architect of the Capitol and described the problem. They gave us a tentative mitigation plan,
which we examined. And we reached the conclusionand I told the
Architect about this as wellwe reached the conclusion that it was
insufficient. And it was insufficient in at least two respects.
In one respect, it was insufficient because insufficient monies
were going to be reprogrammed or were going to be asked for in
this fiscal year. I think less than $4 million was being requested.
Whereas the contractor back in 2000 had said it will be at least

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$13 million in order to just do the concrete, to prevent the spalling
of the concrete and things like that. So we knew that an insufficient amount was being requested. And therefore, it would not be
possible to do all the repairs within short order.
And the other aspect of it that was of most concern to us was
that there were no intermediate measures that were being undertaken or proposed by the Architect until the full repairs could be
made. And there was no suggestion about putting in netting or any
other kinds of things that might be able to be done to protect the
workers.
And because of that, we decided that it was necessary to file a
complaint.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. I am sorry if that is an overlong answer.
Senator ALLARD. No, we needed that detail. Thank you.
The question, then, is what kind of follow up do you have? This
has gone on for 6 years now.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. Well, 512 years. I have been an inspector myself, and I always would say I will be back in 1 month and see how
you are doing. Why was there not that kind of follow up?
Mr. EVELETH. I cannot answer that entirely, because I was not
on duty at that time. But what I can tell you is that under the citation, the Architect was supposed to have completed the repairs during the following fiscal year.
Senator ALLARD. So we were just taking the word of the Architect that the work had been done?
Mr. EVELETH. No, no, sir, no. I am saying that they had a couple
of years in order to do the work.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. EVELETH. And then we would go back and see whether they
had done the work.
Senator ALLARD. I see.
Mr. EVELETH. There was not a continuing reporting process.
That is number one.
Two, we did not have the resources, frankly, to do all the inspections and to follow up on all these things untilas I say, when I
got on duty, my primary interest was to look at those violations
and citations that looked the most serious and those that had not
been inspected at all. And so I turned to that.
Now should we have done more? Absolutely we should have done
more. And now we are in a position to do more. And that is what
our whole intention is to do by this RACS system, is to be able to
identify those violations that are the most serious in terms of likelihood of occurrence and likelihood of injury to people. And that is
going to be our emphasis.
Senator ALLARD. And do you have a system of tracking these violations now within the Office of Compliance?
Mr. EVELETH. We do now.
Senator ALLARD. When did you put that into effect?
Mr. EVELETH. Pardon me?
Senator ALLARD. When did you put that into effect?
Mr. EVELETH. We asked for that, I believe it was, for our fiscal
year 2005 budget. And then we have been in the process ever since

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of loading into that tracking system not only our current inspectionsthat is, when the inspectors go out, they come back to the
Office, they load it into our system, and it says exactly where the
violation is, the RAC number, what code section is being violated,
and when the employing office or the Architect will abate it. And
then we analyze that data, and we will go back as soon as we have
the information from them and tell them, yes, we think that is appropriate or no, you have to speed that process up.
But thank goodness for that appropriation, because when you are
talking about 10,000 violations, plus what we have found in earlier
years, it is impossible to keep track of it without some kind of a
solid database.
Senator ALLARD. You do. And you have to prioritize.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. As an inspector, if I found a serious violation,
I would say I will be back in 2 weeks or I will be back in 30
days
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. To follow up on things. If it was
less serious, I would say, well, I will pick it up in a couple of
months and see how you are doing.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. So it seems to me that if it is a RAC one, it
needs to be followed up a little more closely than if it is some other
less serious violation.
Mr. EVELETH. Absolutely. And what we do, when our inspectors
go in and they see a RAC one situation, they immediately issue a
notice of serious deficiency and tell them to fix it. And we follow
up on all those RAC ones right away.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. Now obviously if you have a situation like the tunnels, that is not something that can be fixed like that.
Senator ALLARD. No. I understand that.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. We are doing our best to respond to that, by the
way, if you noticed.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. And we greatly appreciate that.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.
Mr. EVELETH. That is critical.
COMPLAINT AGAINST ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL ABOUT THE
TUNNELS

Senator ALLARD. Apparently your office is involved in a legal proceeding to address the complaint with the Architect of the Capitol,
I understand.
Mr. EVELETH. That is correct.
Senator ALLARD. What is the status of that process? And how do
you expect it will conclude?
Mr. EVELETH. Well, we are now in the process ofwe have submitted position papers, both sides. The hearing officer has been appointed. We will be setting out our respective witnesses and all the
pretrial stuff that goes with that.
Senator ALLARD. This is a hearing procedure
Mr. EVELETH. That is correct.

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Senator ALLARD [continuing]. Using a hearing officer, not a fullblown court case. Is that right?
Mr. EVELETH. Well, the process is this: A hearing officer is appointed by the Executive Director of the Office of Compliance. A
full litigation proceeds with discovery and so forth. There is then
a hearing before a hearing officer, who issues a report. That report
then may be appealed. The results of his order in this case will be
appealed to the board of directors of the Office of Compliance. And
then the dissatisfied party may go to the United States Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit. So it is an administrative proceeding before the Office of Compliance, but subject to appeal to
the court.
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL PLAN TO REMEDY TUNNEL ISSUES

Senator ALLARD. Now, has the Office of Compliance had an opportunity to review the Architects plan that was submitted on
April 10, to both Senator Durbin and myself to remedy the tunnel
problems?
Mr. EVELETH. There was an excerpt given to us, I believe, last
week. And later last week, we asked the Architect to provide that
to us.
Senator ALLARD. That is, almost 30 days after we received it, it
was given to you?
Mr. EVELETH. Right. And we just received it this morning. So I
have not had a chance to look at it yet. But we were asked by the
Architects Office to respond to that. But as I said, we just got it
this morning.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. I am surprised that he did not allow you
to review that before he submitted it to the subcommittee.
Mr. EVELETH. Well, I believe the position of the Architects counsel was that because we were in litigation, they were not going to
share that information with us, and that was really something that
should be governed by the discovery under the proceedings that are
now before the hearing officer.
Senator ALLARD. When did the litigation get filed?
Mr. EVELETH. February 28.
Senator ALLARD. The 28th.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. So their immediate response is not to talk to
you after that litigation is filed?
Mr. EVELETH. Well, I think there could be more communication,
yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. Yes. So you would have preferred that they
communicated with you at least before they submitted the plan to
us.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. As a consequence, we do not know how you
really feel about that evaluation because you just got it yesterday.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. Today.
Senator ALLARD. Today?
Mr. EVELETH. Right. This morning. That is correct.
Senator ALLARD. You did not have a chance to review it for this
testimony.
Mr. EVELETH. No, I did not.

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Senator ALLARD. I would like to get your evaluation on that as
soon as possible. As soon as you do get a chance to evaluate it,
would you send it to the subcommittee as part of your response for
this hearing?
Mr. EVELETH. Yes, indeed.
[The information follows:]
As was discussed at the hearing, that report was not provided to the Office of the
General Counsel (OGC) until the morning of the hearing. We are attempting to provide overall comments to the abatement plan itself, but also to the specific questions
you posed. This is based on the assessment of the members of our staff and our contract safety consultants as well as a recent summary briefing by the staff of the Architect of the Capitol on May 11, 2006, respecting the AOC plan.
The Architects plan raises complex technical questions that this office will need
to address with respect to the adequacy of the measures proposed to be undertaken,
both in the short and long term, to correct the hazardous conditions. This will require the services of structural engineering firms and other experts in order to make
these assessments. Since this office does not presently have on hand the necessary
technical expertise to evaluate the AOC plan, it is in the process of interviewing experts for these purposes. Accordingly, this should be considered to be a preliminary
report. With this caveat, however, the OOC is fully supportive of the emergency supplemental budgetary support to fund the AOC plan.
We met with representatives from the AOCs safety, engineering, and tunnels
staffs on May 11, 2006, to provide further explanation of the report. The AOCs report (on page 42) provides immediate and mid-term estimates of costs exceeding
$117 million. While that estimate provides a breakdown of costs for each tunnel for
fiscal year 2006, 2007, and 2008, it does not provide a similar breakdown for each
program area (i.e., asbestos abatement, communications upgrade, egress improvements, etc.). At the meeting with the AOC officials, we became aware that additional financial sheets existed that would provide this information. The AOC provided those figures to the OGC on May 16, 2006, and they are currently being reviewed by this office.
The Architects abatement plan provides a plan of action, not only for the conditions identified in the Complaint, dated February 28, 2006 (falling concrete, emergency communications, and emergency egress), but also for those conditions identified in Citations 60 and 61 (asbestos and heat stress).
Comments on the Abatement Plan
At our meeting with the AOC on May 11, 2006, Susan Adams, Director, Safety,
Fire and Environmental Programs for the AOC, noted that the abatement plan was
developed by the AOC in a 10-day period immediately following their March hearings before the Appropriations Subcommittee and in response to specific requests
from Senators Durbin and Mikulski. This fact raises two concerns. First, the Report
indicates that even though the Architect was aware of the serious conditions in the
tunnels as a result of Citation 24 issued in CY 2000 and the repeated inquiries from
OOC inspectors on behalf of the tunnels workers during the 108th inspections, the
original fiscal year 2007 budget request from the AOC identified only $1.8 million
to be reprogrammed in fiscal year 2006 and $1.75 million in fiscal year 2007 for the
correction of the hazards and tunnel maintenance. That is a very small percentage
of the amount now identified as necessary to correct these significant hazards. Second, we are concerned about the accuracy of both the monetary and time allocations
assessed for the individual elements of the abatement plan. While we are certain
that the AOC made every reasonable and good faith efforts to prepare reasonable
estimates, past experience would indicate that estimates developed under such conditions may not necessarily prove to be accurate either in terms of the length of
time or the amount of resources it will take to effectively abate the hazards, especially since the contracted for condition assessments have not been completed, and
the full extent of remedial measures necessarily have not been determined. Therefore, both interim and long-term measures proposed by the AOC plan may be inadequate to fully protect the tunnel workers, and may consequently place them at further risk.
In addition, we believe that parts of the AOCs abatement plan do not provide
adequate interim protective measures. For example, one interim measure involves
the Construction Management Division of the AOC (now Construction Division) conducting visual inspections in order to identify those areas where the risk of falling
concrete is most severe. Prior consultant reports indicate that visual inspections
may not adequately identify all areas of potential delamination and spalling. The

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CD is tasked with removing concrete sections at risk of falling. This is a cumbersome and time consuming process. Workers must erect structures to protect the
piping system from falling concrete pieces, and the small, confined spaces make access to the spalling concrete difficult. Therefore, it is unlikely that these interim
measures can be completed by the end of the calendar year as estimated by the
AOC. The longer this process takes, of course, the longer tunnel workers and others
will be exposed to this serious hazard. Additional information should be sought from
the AOC to ascertain whether sufficient resources are being dedicated to this task.
Under the AOC plan, hazards in the Y tunnel will be among the last to be permanently fixed. The study which will advise whether the Y tunnel should be replaced
or repaired is scheduled to be completed by the end of fiscal year 2006. However,
if the recommendation is made to replace the tunnel, then another study will be required to determine if other options, such as alternative sources of power for the
buildings serviced by the Y tunnel, are available. That study is not anticipated to
be completed until at least the middle of 2007. Again, because of the lack of sufficient egress points, the high heat levels, and the advanced state of deterioration in
this tunnel, we are concerned about the adequacy of interim measures to protect
workers using this tunnel.
In the abatement plan, the AOC requests approximately $14 million for complete
asbestos removal in the tunnels and the installation of new insulation. The OOC
endorses this approach in theory. GAO accurately testified to the Appropriations
Subcommittee on April 27, 2006, that the industry standard calls to leave asbestos
in place, unless it is going to be subject to further damage, or access is needed for
maintenance. During that hearing, however, neither GAO nor the AOC discussed
a principal justification for complete removal of asbestos in additional areas of the
tunnels where the steam pipes generate excessive heat levels that adversely affects
the integrity of the tunnels and the health and safety of tunnel workers. These adverse heat conditions only serve to exacerbate the problems already present causing
further deterioration and spalling of the concrete. We are informed by the AOC that
by replacing the current asbestos coverings with other types of insulation, the temperatures in tunnels could be significantly reduced. Therefore. the hybrid approach
of removing only damaged or friable asbestos and the asbestos found in the excessively hot areas, therefore, may not be effective from either an abatement or cost
effectiveness standpoint. Accordingly, we believe that before a decision is made with
respect to adopting the hybrid approach this issue should be carefully studied.
Of particular concern is the fact that the abatement plan provides no mechanism
for the sharing of information with the Office of Compliance which is responsible
for assuring that the violations set forth in the underlying citations are fully abated.
The General Counsel is responsible for monitoring abatement. In order to provide
appropriate oversight and evaluation of the effectiveness and progress of the abatement measures, the AOC must make continuously available full access to the information produced by the AOC and its contractors. This is an area where this office
can be of assistance in providing independent analyses and assessments for the Subcommittee.
Comments to Specific Questions
We were asked to address those priorities that are most urgent and those that
could be dealt with at a later time.
While all of the conditions addressed in our Complaint and Citations 60 and 61
are significant, in our judgment the highest priority must be given to those hazards
that create the most serious and imminent risk of harm. First and foremost are
those measures that protect the tunnel workers from falling concrete. Second, is protection from friable asbestos exposure. Finally, are those risks that are exacerbated
as a result of the heat stress.
ASBESTOS ISSUES

IN THE

TUNNELS

AND

VAULTS AS

OF

MAY 2, 2006

A.What has the AIR SAMPLING shown so far?

1. We have reviewed 79 valid sample results provided to us by the AOC.
Valid means samples that were not overloaded, voided or field blanks.
2. Nine (9) of these sample results exceeded 0.1 fiber per cubic centimeter; however, only one employees exposure exceeded 0.1 fiber/cc after the results were adjusted for time.
0.1 fiber/cc is the OSHA permissible exposure limit (PEL) for an 8-hour timeweighted average (TWA).
Adjusted for time means time-weighted or averaged for an 8- hour period.

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3. The one employee whose time-weighted sample exceeded 0.1 fiber/cc had a
TWA exposure of 0.30 fiber/cc averaged from the two (2) samples of his exposure
for that day.
That employee was an AOC inspector, but it is not clear from the monitoring
records what he was doing that produced a much higher exposure level.
4. That employees 30-minute exposure (3.49 fiber/cc) exceeded the excursion limit.
The excursion limit (EL) is another OSHA PEL for asbestos; the EL limits 30minute exposures to 1.0 fiber/cc.
5. The documentation records did not have sufficient detail to explain why this
workers exposure was significantly greater than the other employees sample results.
6. The OOC performed five samples on Tunnel Shop employees last week.
The preliminary results for both time-weighted averages and 30-minute excursions have been less than the OSHA PELs.
Preliminary means we have received facsimile results from the OSHA laboratory but do not have the formal confirmation of the results.
7. The OOC monitoring for the Tunnel Shop is not complete.
During the sampling done last week, Tunnel Shop employees were performing
escort duties, tracing circuits and walk-through duties.
These duties would not be expected to disturb the asbestos and create large exposures.
The OOC intends to sample Tunnel Shop employees during repairs and when
they use equipment likely to disturb asbestos.
These tasks occur intermittently; therefore, it might take some months before
the OOCs sampling has been completed.
B. Is the personal protective equipment (PPE) used in the tunnels adequate?
1. From the sample results done so far, so good. The half-face respirators and
Tyvek coveralls (which also cover the shoes) provide adequate protection for these
levels.
Half-face respirators seal across the top of the nose and dont cover the eyes.
Full-face respirators seal across the forehead and shield the eyes.
2. OSHA requires different types of respiratory protection for higher exposure levels.
Half-face respirators may be used if exposures dont exceed 10 times the PEL.
The highest exposure (time-weighted and excursion) is 3 to 3.5 times the PEL.
3. If future samples (done during operations that disturb asbestos more than the
samples taken to date) exceed 10 times the PEL, full-face respirators would need
to be used.
Higher levels would require even more protective respirators.
If levels exceed 10 times the PEL, then (at least) full-face powered-air purifying would be needed.
Levels higher than 100 times the PEL would require supplied-air respirators
operated in the pressure demand mode.
The highest levels (more than 1,000 times the PEL) would also require an auxiliary self-contained breathing apparatus (often called an escape bottle).
C. What DECONTAMINATION is required?
There are two sets of requirements for decontamination.
1. One set is for workers who maintain the tunnels and the equipment within the
tunnels.
Hygiene requirements for these workers are found in the General Industry
Standard [ 1910.1001].
2. A second set of requirements for hygiene is found in the Construction industry
standard [ 1926.1101]
The definition of construction work [ 1926.32(g)] lists construction, alteration,
and/or repair.
Workers who are abating the asbestos, performing cleanup associated with
abatement activities, or performing construction, alterations and/or repair must
comply with the Construction Industry requirements.
D. What decontamination does the general industry standard require for asbestos?
The General Industry requirements for hygiene facilities and practices lists the
following required elements for employees who are exposed above a TWA or EL:
Clean change rooms must be provided with separate storage areas to prevent
street clothes from being contaminated from protective clothing and equipment.
Showers must be used, at least at the end of the shift.
Employees required to shower must not wear clothing or equipment outside the
workplace during the shift.

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Lunchroom facilities with positive pressure, filtered air supply must be readily
accessible to employees.
Employees must wash their hands and faces before eating, drinking or smoking.
Employees must not enter lunchroom facilities with protective work clothing or
equipment unless surface asbestos fibers have been removed.
E. What decontamination is required by the construction industry standard?
1. The Construction Industry standard [ 1926.1101(j)] has different hygiene facilities and practices required for different types of asbestos work.
2. The most stringent requirements are for large Class I jobs.
Class I work involves removing thermal system insulation or surfacing asbestos-containing materials or presumed asbestos-containing materials (ACM/
PACM).
Large jobs involve more than 25 linear feet or 10 square feet of thermal system insulation or surfacing ACM/PACM.
3. The less stringent requirements are for small Class I jobs, and for Class II
and Class III jobs where exposures exceed a PEL or where exposures have not been
determined.
Small jobs involve less than 25 linear feet or 10 square feet of thermal system
insulation or surfacing ACM/PACM.
Class II work involves removing ACM other than that in Class I. Examples include: wallboard, floor tile, roofing, siding, and mastics.
Class III work involves repair and maintenance operations where ACM is likely
to be disturbed.
4. Employees doing Class IV work in a regulated must comply with the hygiene
practices of the other employees in the area.
Class IV work during which employee contact, but do not disturb, ACM or
PACM, and activities to clean up dust, waste and debris resulting from Class
I, II and III activities.
F. What decontamination is required for large Class I jobs?
1. Decontamination area must be adjacent to, and connected with, the regulated
area.
The decontamination area must have an equipment room, shower, and clean room
in series.
Employees must enter and exit through the decontamination area.
2. Equipment rooms must have impermeable, labeled containers to contain and
dispose of contaminated PPE.
Employees do not remove their respirators in the equipment room.
3. A shower area must be adjacent to equipment room and the clean room, unless
the employer can demonstrate that this location is not feasible.
4. Where the shower area is not adjacent to the equipment room, before proceeding to the shower, employee must either
remove contamination from their work suits using a HEPA vacuum, or
remove contaminated work suits and don clean work suits.
5. A clean change room must be equipped with storage containers for each employee.
Employees must change into street clothing in the clean change rooms, or in
a clean change area if a room adjacent to the equipment room is not feasible.
Upon entering a regulated area, employees must don PPE and respirators in
the clean room or area.
6. Lunch areas on site must be in areas where exposures are less than the PELs.
G. What are the decontamination requirements for small Class I jobs, or Class II
or Class III jobs where exposures either exceed a PEL or havent been determined?
1. An equipment room or area must be established adjacent to the regulated area,
covered by an impermeable drop cloth on the floor or horizontal working surface.
The room or area must have impermeable, labeled containers to contain and
dispose of contaminated PPE.
Area must be of sufficient size for cleaning equipment and removing PPE without spreading visible contamination beyond the area.
Work clothing must be cleaned with a HEPA vacuum before it is removed.
All equipment and surfaces of containers must be cleaned before removing them
from the equipment room or area.
Employees must enter and exit the regulated area through the equipment area.

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H. What have our inspectors found regarding decontamination procedures?
1. During an inspection, one of our inspectors observed a briefing to Tunnel Shop
personnel from a safety contractor (Mr. Hedges from The Safety Company) on
AOC decontamination policy.
The stated goal was to use some General Industry and some Construction Industry requirements; that goal would not produce a compliant policy.
The briefing resulted in a discussion of end-of-day showering versus showering
to prevent contamination from spreading into other campus buildings.
The only decontamination that our inspectors observed was the removal of PPE,
which had been worn over the work clothes that are taken home for cleaning.
I. What information is required in monitoring records?
1. Monitoring records must include the following information [ 1910.1001(m)(1)
and 1926.1101(n)(2)]:
The date of measurement;
The operation involving exposure to asbestos which is being monitored;
Sampling and analytical methods used and evidence of their accuracy;
Number, duration, and results of samples taken;
Type of respiratory protective devices worn, if any; and
Name, social security number and exposure of all employees whose exposure are
represented.
2. The two required items that we have found to be of concern in the past are:
The description of the operations lack sufficient detail to determine the potential sources and pathways of exposure.
For example, there is no information associated with the single employee
whose exposure is 3 times the PEL to offer an explanation as to why both
of his sample results on that day were much higher than the others.
All of the employees whose exposure is represented by a sample are not documented.
For example, the descriptions that AOC provided indicated one or two people
were doing the same operations in the same area and, presumably, their exposures would be similar. The names of these employees, however, are not
identified in the records.

Senator ALLARD. Thank you. Now, rather than both your office
and the AOC spending a lot of resources in litigation, I am interested in focusing on results wherever possible. Can the Office of
Compliance work cooperatively with the Architect to come up with
appropriate remedies to this, or has this litigation step made that
impossible?
Mr. EVELETH. No. I would certainly prefer to do it that way. I
think that is really what should be done. I think we should be
workingwe do workwe do meet with the Architect monthly on
other matters, as well. And we have worked fairly cooperatively
with them. And I do not see why it could not be done in this instance. I also think that we could be working as well with the Government Accountability Office (GAO), because we know that they
are involved in this, as well. And I would think that the combined
resources of all of usand as I have said before, we all lay our
cards out on the table, because this is one entity, this is the legislative branch. This is not x corporation versus something or other.
This is one entity, and I look forward to working with the Architect
and GAO, if at all possible, in this.
Senator ALLARD. I think one thing that would help us in working
with him is to set priorities of those items that are most urgent to
take care of and those that could be dealt with at a later time. We
tried to work that out with our emergency supplemental request.
But I think at some point in time we will ask you that question,
and the Architect. So when you are discussing back and forth with
one another, that would be an important helpful response for this
subcommittee.

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Mr. EVELETH. We would be certainly pleased to do that. And that
is what we are trying to do.
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION APPROVED
METHODS FOR ABATING ASBESTOS

Senator ALLARD. Very good. Now the Architect of the Capitol testified last week that they were using Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (OSHA) approved methods. From what you
understand, are they using OSHA approved methods or not, or do
you need to review the plan before you respond to that?
Mr. EVELETH. Is this with respect to asbestos?
Senator ALLARD. Yes. That is on the decontamination procedures.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. Right. Yes and no. We have reviewed some
of the samples that we were provided and the data that accompanied that. I do not think that we received all the data yet. And
in addition, we are also doing some asbestos testing ourselves, as
an office. There are certain requirements that are set out under the
OSHA regulations. And there are two problems that we are seeing
now, and one is that there is a lack of a description of the operations, adequate description of the operations, that the tunnel
workers, or whoever it is that is in the tunnel, could be the CMD
people, as well as the tunnel workers who are doing work in the
tunnels.
And there is a lack of sufficient detail to determine what it is
that they are doing. That is very important in order to make a determination about whether the levels of asbestos exceed the standards. Because you could just be walking through the tunnel, and
it is notyou are notif you are not engaged in your usual activity, you are not in a position to judge what the degree of risk is.
And this is very important because the amount of protection that
you are required to have, in terms of face masks and other things
like that, come into play, depending on whether or not you are exceeding the exposure levels or not. If you exceed them greatly, then
you need different kinds of masks than you would need if you are
only exceeding it
Senator ALLARD. If I remember his testimony, he talked about a
half face mask
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. As opposed to a full face mask.
Mr. EVELETH. There are full face masks there. And there are others, as well.
Senator ALLARD. Do you think there might be a need for a full
face mask?
Mr. EVELETH. It would depend on the degree of exposure to asbestos.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. And if there is a great deal, then you need a full
face mask. And if there is even more than that, then you need
something that actually pumps air, oxygen, into the mask and so
forth.
Senator ALLARD. So you are not sure that they are complying
with OSHA approved methods at this point. That is the bottom
line. Is that correct?

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Mr. EVELETH. I think that would be an accurate way of putting
it. And also, there are issues, I think, that involve decontamination, that is to say, whether they provide a clean room for people
to take off their work clothes, if there may be fibers of asbestos on
it. There are certain requirements with regard to taking a shower
before they go out of the area and so forth and so on. And some
of those are still questionable.
Senator ALLARD. Well, when you review his report that you just
received
Mr. EVELETH. Yes.
Senator ALLARD [continuing]. Keep that question in mind. If you
could give us a more complete answer back, we would appreciate
that.
Mr. EVELETH. Okay. Happy to.
[The information follows:]
Question. Does the AOC follow OSHA-approved methods with regard to asbestos,
in terms of personal protective equipment and decontamination procedures?
Answer. The type of personal protective equipment (PPE) that is required depends
on the exposure level. For example, if the level of exposure does not exceed 10 times
the permissible exposure limit (PEL), half-face mask respirators may be used. The
limited sample data available to date shows the highest exposure is 3 to 3.5 times
the PEL. If this were the highest exposure, then half-face mask respirators would
be adequate. If, however, future samples were taken during operations that disturbed asbestos more than the samples taken to date, and the samples exceeded 10
times the PEL, full-face mask respirators would be required. See Asbestos Issues
in the Tunnels and Vaults, B.1. below. Because we currently do not have sufficient
data to ascertain whether the PPE now used in the tunnels is adequate, we cannot
definitively determine the amount of asbestos to which workers are exposed in the
course of performing their usual duties.
With regard to decontamination procedures, based upon limited inspection, it did
not appear that the decontamination procedures followed by the AOC in April 2006
were fully code-compliant. As discussed more fully in Asbestos Issues in the Tunnels
and Vaults, pp. 68, below, the OSHA General Industry Standard that applies to
workers who maintain the tunnels and equipment within the tunnels sets forth specific protective measures for employees who are exposed to asbestos levels above the
PEL. These include providing clean changing rooms with separate storage areas to
prevent street clothes from being contaminated from protective clothing and equipment, showers, and limitations upon workers wearing protective equipment in areas
outside the workplace. A second set of requirements is found in the Construction
Industry Standard. We understand from recent discussions with the AOC that it
will be revising its decontamination procedures to bring them into compliance with
OSHA requirements.
AIR SAMPLING

Senator ALLARD. Now, unfortunately, the Architect of the Capitol

has not consistently and systematically sampled the air in the tunnels for the presence of asbestos. And as a result, we have no documentation on what exposure there may have been in the past. Is
AOC currently using appropriate methods of sampling? Can you
answer that question?
Mr. EVELETH. I would prefer, if I could, to defer to submit this
afterward, because I would rather use the knowledge of my safety
experts on that. And they could give you a much more detailed
and
Senator ALLARD. That would be fine.
Mr. EVELETH [continuing]. Precise answer. Because I am a lawyer, as you know, and

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Senator ALLARD. Okay. I will give you some time to do that. I
am wondering is it unreasonable to request that you respond back
to our concerns within 10 days?
Mr. EVELETH. I think we could certainly do that.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Well, we will expect it in 10 days. If you
cannot, if you would notify the subcommittee
Mr. EVELETH. I will do so.
Senator ALLARD. I would appreciate that.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
[The information follows:]
Question. Is the AOC currently using appropriate methods of sampling the air in
the tunnels for the presence of asbestos?
Answer. Sampling asbestos correctly necessitates collecting samples under all several scenarios, from those with the most exposure risk to those with the least. This
includes taking samples under circumstances under which asbestos may be disturbed and become airborne. In our discussions with the AOC, it appears that it recognizes deficiencies in the methods it has employed in taking asbestos samples. Specifically, there are too few samples, taken under circumstances that are the least
likely to disturb the asbestos, and the monitoring records lack sufficient detail to
determine potential sources and pathways of exposure. For example, the monitoring
is unrepresentative because the samples we reviewed were not taken when employees were performing duties such as performing repairs or using equipment likely to
disturb asbestos and create greater exposures. Specific details follow in Asbestos
Issues in the Tunnels and Vaults, A. 6&7 & I, below.
DISTANCE BETWEEN EGRESS POINTS

Senator ALLARD. With respect to the new utility tunnel for the
Capitol Visitor Center, we had some discussion on that in our last
hearing as to the appropriate travel distance between egress points
in such tunnels. Now that is a 750-foot tunnel that has no escape
hatches. Is there a safety code that mandates what the distance
should be?
Mr. EVELETH. Yes, there is. And I wouldlet me give you, if I
may, a brief response to that. And I will also supplement that, if
I may. But it is my understanding, after speaking to our safety experts is that yes, there is a requirement. And as we understand it,
the distance, there should be an exit at least every 800 feet, which
meansin other words, there would be a 400-foot travel distance
for an employee to get to an exit. It is every 800 feet if the tunnel
is fire sprinkler protected. In other words, you get a greater distance if there is a sprinkler in there. If there is not
Senator ALLARD. Is that tunnel that was just constructed fire
sprinkler protected?
Mr. EVELETH. We have not inspected that. I do not know the answer to that. But I do know that that is the requirement. In other
words, there would be 600 feet between exits if it is not fire
sprinklered. It is 800 if it is fire sprinklered.
Senator ALLARD. I see.
Mr. EVELETH. So that in this instance, it is assuming that it is
not fire sprinklered. It would appearbut, of course, we have not
inspected it. We do not know what it looks like. There may be
something that we do not know about it. So I do not really want
to opine more than I just have.
Senator ALLARD. Now there seems to be more confusion. The Department of Labor has their Occupational Safety and Health Administration and they have a fire code here. It is the NEPA 101

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Life Safety Code. If I refer to that document, does that make sense
to you?
Mr. EVELETH. Yes.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. In that document, in paragraph 40.2.6.1,
they say the travel distance measured in accordance with section
7.6, that is the travel distance to exits, shall not exceed 200 feet
or 60 meters.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. But I believe that there is another section,
which is 40.2.6.3.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Well, I think we are confused on the subcommittee. I am wondering if you can resolve this.
Mr. EVELETH. Certainly.
Senator ALLARD. And get a memo to us on that.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. Because there is a special exit travel distance requirement for low and ordinary hazard special purpose industrial occupancy. That is the way it
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. And that is apparently a more lenient issue.
Senator ALLARD. It depends on the type of tunnel that you are
dealing with.
Mr. EVELETH. That is correct. That is correct.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. Well, if you would work that out.
Mr. EVELETH. Sure.
Senator ALLARD. And we are interested in making sure that we
are meeting the code with the new tunnel.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. That is the bottom line.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
[The information follows:]
Question. Clarify the travel distances between escape hatch for tunnels (with and
without sprinkler). Which Life Safety code applies under what circumstances?
Answer. The Life Safety Code was developed to provide protective measures for
building occupants when there is a fire. However, the main hazard in Capitol Hill
utility tunnels is a steam leak. Although most of the time when safety people think
about a travel distance issue, they think of fire safety and the Life Safety Code,
unfortunately, there is not a specific tunnel safety code. Although we are not certain
what standard should apply in steam tunnels, we want to be very sure we understand what the generally applied practice is. There probably is an industry practice for the major tunnel designers and builders, and we have been received some
preliminary data that indicates it may be about 500 feet, from exit to exit (pointto-point). We need to ascertain the industry practice in order to determine if the
General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act applies in this circumstance; if there is an industry practice, the General Duty Clause requires that
it be followed.
Some of the remedies in the Life Safety Code to protect tunnel occupants from
fire could actually make conditions in the tunnels more hazardous, if a steam leak
were to occur. For example, a fire barrier would not help, because it would compartmentalize sections of the tunnel and cause steam buildup and intensity. If steam
leaks, what the workers need to be able to do is to run away from the leak and
get out of the area or tunnel. In the case of the Capitol Visitor Center utility tunnel
the only safety item at issue is whether the distance between the two exits is too
great. The tunnel was installed with only two exitsone at either end, with the distance between exits of almost 800 feet.
We have had discussions of this issue with the AOC and the CVC contractors who
built this tunnel. A review of the engineering consultants assertions to the AOC
would appear to indicate that there is no outside limit to the travel distance that
is required under the Life Safety Code due to the way the engineering contractor
characterized the tunnel. We disagree with the underlying assertion that unlimited
distance is acceptable, since, among other factors, the industry practice would suggest otherwise.

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What we have been told by the AOC is that installing another egress point would
be expensive and that there is no money for doing it. This week, the Office of Compliance met with representatives from the AOC and the CVC contractors, and explained to them that we wanted to do further research into the issue and verify
what is the acceptable norm for tunnel egress, as a matter of industry practice.
Until weve completed our research, the OOC is not taking the position that another
egress is needed in the CVC tunnel, but we do want to find out what other organizations are doing when they build new utility tunnels. We anticipate that we will
reach a conclusion by the end of this month, and we will so advise the Subcommittee.
If an additional egress is required, the additional construction may be done after
the CVC has been opened to the public. Hence, the opening need not be delayed by
this consideration.
FIRE ALARM SYSTEM IN THE CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER

Senator ALLARD. As you know, a debate is going on now between

the Architect of the Capitols fire marshal and the Capitol Police
Board as to the fire alarm system in the Capitol Visitor Center. Do
you have any comments as to how this issue can be resolved expeditiously, and who ultimately should have the authority to make
the final determination?
Mr. EVELETH. We have not been involved in these discussions or
consulted in these discussions, but I think we are generally aware
of the position of the fire marshal. Our position has been during
our inspections, and this does not deal with the CVC, but our belief
is that, certainly except for the Capitol, our belief is that if a fire
alarm is pulled, then the alarm should go off. And rather than having it do what it does in the Capitol, where there is an annunciator
board, and the Capitol Police then go and check to see whether
there is actually a fire or not. And then they come back and do
what they need to do. If there is a fire, obviously they allow the
alarm to go off.
That is a unique situation. And it is unique. And for a number
of good reasons, it is done that way. But it is done that way because there are a large number of Capitol police available, which
means that they can travel to the location of wherever that fire
alarm has been pulled in short order and get back and do something about it.
That is not the case with some of the larger office buildings on
the Hill. And that is not the case with the visitor center, as well.
So it would beour belief is that when a fire alarm is pulled, that
the alarm itself should sound.
Senator ALLARD. So your recommendation would be to treat the
Capitol Visitor Center like any of the other large buildings around
and still keep the Capitol under its exemption status because of the
number of officers that are available in the immediate area.
Mr. EVELETH. That is correct.
Senator ALLARD. I see. I understand that that is the position of
the fire marshal.
Mr. EVELETH. Right.
Senator ALLARD. But it is not the position of the Police Board.
Is that correct?
Mr. EVELETH. That is correct. Right. Now your other question
was who should make the decision, I believe.
Senator ALLARD. Yes.

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Mr. EVELETH. And normally the decision like that is made by the
authority having jurisdiction, which, of course, is a term of art in
the building industry. And normally that is an authority that is
sort of independent of the parties in the sense that, for example,
if I am a builder and I want to do something, I either have to follow code or I have to come up with something that provides the
equivalent level of safety and protection, safety protection. And it
is usually some independent entity that makes that decision.
A number of years ago, a couple of years ago, the Architect asked
to be designated as the authority having jurisdiction, so that it
could in effect waive the prescriptive requirements and implement
its own. This agency notified the Senate that it objected to that position, because it felt like it needed the separation between the individual deciding the case and theI think that the
Senator ALLARD. So the OOC has notified the Senate that they
do not think there is enough distance between the Architect, as far
as personal culpability, I guess, for you to be happy with the Architect making the decision. Is that right?
Mr. EVELETH. We would not be happy with the Architect being
the authority having jurisdiction over matters of which it is itself
both an advocate for change and approving the change. And so that
was the position we took then.
Senator ALLARD. I see.
Mr. EVELETH. Our position
Senator ALLARD. Now where did that recommendation go to?
Mr. EVELETH. I cannot recall. We received notice that they had
asked for that authority. And we wrote a letter. And I cannot tell
you at this point
Senator ALLARD. Well, you had asked through the appropriation
process.
Mr. EVELETH. It could have been. I can dig that up. I just do not
remember off the top of my head.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. But what I am getting at is I think we also took
the position then that the Office of Compliance is a perfect model
for being an authority having jurisdiction. That is to say, it is an
independent entity that can make judgment about health and safety issues. And I would think that would also be true in this sort
of situation.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. And there is a full method of litigating that, really,
if they object and we would issue a citation, I mean, our board
would decide. And if they wanted to challenge it in the court, they
could do that. Hopefully, it would not come to all that. But it is the
principle that we are talking about.
Senator ALLARD. Hopefully you would work it out and quickly.
Mr. EVELETH. Right. Right. We would do it, we would hope to do
it quickly.
Senator ALLARD. Okay.
Mr. EVELETH. We think the law is pretty clear on this.
[The information follows:]
Question. With regard to the debate between the Fire Marshall and the Capitol
Police Board as to the fire alarm system in the Capitol Visitor Center, how can this
issue be resolved expeditiously? Who should have the authority to make the final

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determination? When and to whom in the Senate did the OOC recommend that the
AOC not be the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ)?
Answer. Relevant to the question of the proper procedures to be applied in the
operation of the fire alarm systems in the CVC are the findings by the OOCs General Counsel described in his biennial report to Congress, Report on Occupational
Safety and Health Inspections during the 108th Congress pursuant to the Congressional Accountability Act, pp. 1921 (excerpt attached). As noted in that Report,
under the Fire Code, a fire alarm system is required that activates a general alarm
throughout a building to alert occupants of fire or other emergencies.
There are two exceptions to this requirement. First, a positive alarm sequence is
permitted that allows a three-minute delay in the activation of the general alarm.
Trained personnel are allowed up to 180 seconds to investigate; if the system is not
reset, all alarms are activated automatically. This delay is intended to permit an
investigation to determine whether there is a false alarm. The AOC Fire Marshal
has endorsed the use of the pre-signal sequence in the Capitol building where there
is a sufficient number of trained officers on duty to enable them to complete an investigation within three minutes. The second exception permits a pre-signal system
that requires that the initial fire alarm system be automatically transmitted without delay to a municipal fire department and an on-site person to respond to a fire
emergency. The specific deficiencies in the existing fire alarm system procedures in
the House and Senate office buildings are discussed in detail in the Report.
With regard to who should have the authority to make the final determination
on this and other issues, we noted some of this agencys concerns in a letter to the
Honorable C.W. Bill Young dated February 20, 2004 (copy attached). Although the
Life Safety code does have not any conflict of interest restrictions, other building
codes do place such restrictions on the official enforcing the code. If the Appropriations and relevant Oversight Committees determine that the Office of Compliance
should be specifically designated as the authority having jurisdiction over these
matters or to resolve disputes between other entities, the Office is well-situated to
handle such responsibilities. Indeed, under the Congressional Accountability Act,
the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance is designated to serve as a neutral forum for resolving all disputes arising under the CAA, subject to court review.
In particular, Congress vested the Board with the authority to determine whether
a modification in the application of a health or safety standard is warranted because
of special circumstances. In particular, by virtue of 1341(c)(4) of the CAA, employing offices may request from the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance
variances from the health and safety standards otherwise applicable by showing
that the alternative proposed would provide a place of employment which is as safe
and healthful as required by the standard from which the variance is sought. Procedural Rules of the Office of Compliance, 4.26 (b)(4). Alternatively, the citation and/
or complaint procedures under the Office of Compliances Occupational Safety and
Health Act jurisdiction could be followed to make a final decision on the issue.

Senator ALLARD. Thank you for your testimony. You have been
helpful.
Mr. EVELETH. Thank you.

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

STATEMENT OF BRUCE R. JAMES, PUBLIC PRINTER
ACCOMPANIED BY:
MIKE WASH, CHIEF TECHNICAL OFFICER
STEVE SHEDD, CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Senator ALLARD. We will go to the next panel now. Our next

panel will be the Government Printing Office.
I want to welcome Mr. Bruce James and his team. GPO is requesting $151 million, an increase of $29 million over the current
year or a 24-percent increase. The increase is in part due to the
requirement to update the U.S. Code over 6 years, as well as some
initiatives to further modernize the agency.
Mr. James, you have accomplished much in your 4 years as Public Printer, and we appreciate your service. You have a great deal
to be proud of, including reversing the trend of annual losses at the
Government Printing Office, revamping the agency into, as you put
it, a 21st century digital platform capable of addressing ongoing
technological changes in how information is processed and disseminated, and developing new business lines, such as the electronic
passports.
You will be a tough act to follow. And we hope you will stay on
in the Government Printing Office until the President can find a
suitable replacement. We look forward to reviewing the various initiatives you have requested for fiscal year 2007 and a status report
of your efforts to make further improvements to modernize the
Government Printing Office.
You may proceed with your testimony now, Mr. James.
OPENING REMARKS OF BRUCE R. JAMES

Mr. JAMES. Thank you and good morning, Mr. Chairman.

Senator ALLARD. Good morning.
Mr. JAMES. I have a statement I would like to submit for the
record.
Senator ALLARD. I will ask unanimous consent. Without objection, we will do that.
Mr. JAMES. Thank you. And I will make a few opening remarks.
But before I do, I would like to introduce two of my colleagues at
the table with me. The first is Mike Wash, who is the Chief Technical Officer of the Government Printing Office. Mike came in
about 2 years ago to join us and has the responsibility for evaluating new technologies that are coming down the road that could
impact Government printing, particularly the dissemination of Government information.
He also has a responsibility for the development of what we are
calling the future digital system, which is the system that will ingest all Government information and then be in a position to re(295)

296
process that information and send it to the Internet or send it out
for printing or however else in the future someone might want to
use it.
I also have with me Steve Shedd, who is the Chief Financial Officer of the Government Printing Office. Steve has been with us for
nearly 3 years now. He came to us after experience in the private
sector both with private and public companies as a chief financial
officer. And they will assist me, if you ask me any tough questions.
Now as I was sitting in the audience, Mr. Chairman, I could not
help but observe your shirt. And, you know, some people might just
say, well, this is just another shirt with, you know, a suit. But as
I sat out there, I was trying to think of the exact mix of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black that I would use to print that shirt, to reproduce it. And, you know, that got me thinking that much of what
we do at the Government Printing Office is just that subject, that
there is a certain mix of colors that we would use in printing ink
to reproduce that shirt accurately.
That would be analog printing, of course. But interestingly
enough, if we presented it in a digital form on a TV set or on a
computer screen, there would be a different set of primary colors
involved with it. And I think what has happened here not only in
the Government, but what has happened in the information industry, is that for many, many years we went along as if everything
would be printed. So all of the information was gathered. It was
maintained. It was coded for future printing.
And what we found, of course, today is that printing is just one
way of delivering information. As a matter of fact, much of the
Governments information is now being delivered in digital format,
as you are well aware. Last year, the Government Printing Office
put 92 percent of all Government publications on the Internet. And
the 8 percent missing is because we have not figured out how to
do maps and other kinds of things, but we will get there.
So we are making great progress. There are certain things that
we are focused on, in particular that I am focused on, in my last
months of service. First is the GPO building complex itself. In
terms of square footage, the complex is twice the size of the Capitol. It is almost the size of the Empire State Building. It is a very
large building complex that was built for a different purpose than
the enterprise that we have today. At one time, there were nearly
10,000 employees housed in the Government Printing Office buildings. Today we are down to just above 2,000. And we do not see
that number of employees climbing greatly.
So we have a facility that is obsolete in every way. Now rather
than come to this subcommittee and to Congress and ask for public
funds to replace that building and re-equip it for the future, instead we have worked out, I think, a very ingenious plan for converting the existing real estate we have into cash that would allow
us to build a new building and equip that building as we need to
do without losing title to that property for the Government.
What is significant about that is that about $35 million of what
we spend each year at the Government Printing Office goes to the
maintenance of this obsolete campus. And it is money that we
would not have to otherwise spend if we were not there.

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And, you know, I sit here in front of you asking for a relatively
modest amount of money. But I want you to think about that $35
million that we are spending each year that we do not have to
spend. If we get on with this building project, we will be able to
actually reduce the request to this subcommittee for appropriations
each year. So any help that you can give us in helping to move this
project along, we would much appreciate it.
The second very important thing that we are engaged in is the
building of the future digital system, which falls under Mike Wash.
That system, as I mentioned 1 minute ago, is the future. What it
will do is take Government information into the system. It will not
be coded for printing. It will have a generic coding scheme in it
that both identifies the kind of information it is, whether it is a
headline or a paragraph or what it is.
It also will contain the source, who created the document, when
was it created, that type of information. And it will be stored in
such a way that it will allow us to authenticate the fact that the
information is actually what the author wrote. It will allow us to
preserve that information in perpetuity. And it will allow us to repurpose that information and send it out however the Government
might require it in the future, or however a public user might want
that information in the future.
The third thing that I think is very important is that it is one
thing to take the ongoing information of the Government and be
prepared to deliver it digitally. But, you know, we have a 200-year
history. And that history is very important. We have tons, carloads,
trucks, warehouses full of paper all across the country that represent the legacy documents of the United States Government.
Now we are very fortunate to have 1,250 library partners in the
Federal depository library system, which has maintained those
books for us in print, and not only maintained those books, but
most importantly have helped the public get the information from
those books.
But our libraries are changing. The entire world is changing.
And we have to be able to go back and digitize that legacy collection and also make it available over the Internet. Now we believe
we probably can find the funds to do this ourselves, with not much
help from Congress.
The next area that we are focused on is workforce retraining. We
have a lot of people at GPO that are used to the analog world,
those who once set type with linotype machines, once made plates,
once operated offset presses. And I do not believe they are threatened in any way by the changes that we are talking about. As a
matter of fact, our 23 bargaining units have been very supportive
of the changes that we are making. And I think the reason is that
over our 145-year history we have been through many technological
changes, each of which made the Government Printing Office
stronger. And they see this as just part of a pattern.
But we owe it to these folks to build on the skills that they have
acquired over the years, to now introduce and train them in new
digital skills. And we are focused on that.
We also are focused on replacing our legacy computer systems.
You hear this, the Appropriations Committee hears this, almost
from every agency. When I walked in the door, I could not believe

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the state of the computer systems. I mean, these were machines
that I had not seen in 30 years that were held together with spit
and chewing gum. And as our employees retire, we had a 81-yearold retire not so long ago, I mean, we are losing the skills that are
required to keep those systems up to date. So we are in the process
of replacing our legacy computer systems with state-of-the-art
equipment that is properly sized, properly constructed to be able to
allow us to move along in the future. And we are asking for help
in regard to replacing those systems.
PREPARED STATEMENT

And the last thing that we are all focused on, particularly Judy
Russell, the Superintendent of Documents, with me, and that is
working with our Federal depository libraries to create the Federal
depository library system of the future. It is clear that as we
change in the way we process information, libraries, too, are changing. And we want to make sure that we are completely aligned
with our libraries. These have been very valuable partners for
many years. And we do not want to lose the value of that partnership, which we believe is helping the American public find and use
Government information.
And that concludes my opening remarks, Mr. Chairman.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

BRUCE R. JAMES

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee on Legislative Branch Appropriations: It is an honor to be here today to present the appropriations request of
the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) for fiscal year 2007.
Mr. Chairman, this will be the last time I have the privilege of appearing before
you. Over the past three years, with the strong support of this Subcommittee, we
have managed to turn GPO in a new direction, one that promises a positive future
for our great agency for many years to come. Now, after three and a half years of
working to achieve that result and much more, it is time for me to begin the plans
for return to my home in Nevada. My pledge was to remain as Public Printer for
the 3 to 5 years it would take to reposition GPO for the future. I have advised the
President that I will continue to serve until a new Public Printer is chosen. I want
to assure you that I will work hard to make a smooth transition of leadership so
that GPO does not miss a step going forward.
2005 RESULTS

Since my appointment as Public Printer, we have been transforming GPO into a

21st century digital platform capable of addressing ongoing technological changes in
how information is processed and disseminated.
Our goal is to provide Government information in the form and formats our customers want and need in this burgeoning digital era, and to ensure that the abiding
mission of the GPOKeeping America Informedcontinues to be carried out for
generations to come.
A primary order of business has been restoring and maintaining GPOs financial
health. I am pleased to report that our efforts to modernize and prepare GPO for
the future, with Congresss support, are generating measurableand ever improvingreturns to GPOs bottom line.
Net income from consolidated GPO operations for fiscal year 2005 increased to
$6.1 million from $1.3 million the previous year, reversing the pattern of losses from
the last decade. We also recorded another reduction to our long-term liability for the
Federal workers compensation program.
Our financial turnaround has also been aided significantly by efforts to right-size
GPOs workforce through voluntary separation incentive programs supported by
Congress. In 2003 and 2004 we reduced GPOs workforce by 542 positions, resulting
in a savings in personnel compensation and benefits costs of about $38 million annually.

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During the first quarter of fiscal year 2006, another incentive program, which was
carried out under the Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (Public
Law 108447), resulted in a further reduction of 89 positions. Recurring annual savings from this recent program will be approximately $8 million commencing October
1, 2006.
Fiscal year 2005 marked a turning point in our transformation efforts with the
release early in the year of our Strategic Vision for the 21st Century, which was
transmitted to Congress and distributed to GPOs stakeholders in both the public
and private sectors.
This document provides a framework for how our transformation goalsdevelopment of a digital content system to anchor all future operations, reorganization of
the agency into new product- and service-oriented business lines along with investment in the necessary technologies, adoption of management best practices agencywide including retraining to provide needed skills, and relocation of the GPO to facilities that are sized and equipped to meet our future needswill be carried out
and funded. During the year we made significant progress in each of these directions.
The core of our future operations will revolve around a digital content system that
we currently refer to as FDsys, for Future Digital System. FDsys is being designed
to organize, manage, and output authenticated content for any use or purpose.
With the approval for transferring the unexpended balances of prior year appropriations to GPOs revolving fund, we secured the majority of the funds we will need
to bring FDsys into operation. In the development of this system, we are engaging
key elements of our customer community in Congress, in Federal agencies, and in
the library community, and we are working under the guidance of the Joint Committee on Printing.
We created a new business line for Security and Intelligent Documents in 2005
that consolidates our longstanding expertise in security documents and offers a
broad range of consultative services to Congress and Federal agencies attempting
to respond to new standards and statutory requirements in this area. An early product of the unit was the security printing requested by the Joint Congressional Committee on the Inauguration to support the first Presidential inaugural ceremonies
since 9/11. This business unit is working closely with the Social Security Administration, the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and other
Federal agencies with secure and intelligent documents responsibilities.
We also created a new Digital Media Services business line to provide essential
retraining in digital production skills and eventually generate content from legacy
documents for ingest to FDSys. We are developing an efficient and cost-effective approach to legacy digitization to be carried out by this new business line, and are
currently engaged in a demonstration project as approved by the Joint Committee
on Printing.
During 2005 we endowed other business lines with new capabilities. To improve
plant production efficiency and broaden the range of product and service options for
Congress and Federal agencies, we invested in a variety of new color and digital
production technologies.
We augmented our expert printing procurement services by partnering with a nationwide firm to provide innovative new convenience duplicating and printing services to Federal agencies across the country. This contracting mechanism features
provisions for capturing Federal documents electronically, which will significantly
assist our efforts to broaden the availability of Federal information for public access
and reduce the incidence of fugitive documents. We also significantly increased the
dollar limit on our popular simplified purchase agreements, expanding and simplifying the ability of Federal agencies to procure products and services directly from
lists of pre-qualified vendors without first having to go through GPO.
Under the leadership of GPOs Superintendent of Documents, we engaged the depository library community in a dialog to define the future of the Federal Depository
Library Program while continuing to move the Program toward a predominately
electronic basis as required by Congress. The total number of titles we now make
available on GPO Access (www.gpoaccess.gov) increased to more than 300,000, with
an average of 37 million retrieved every month, and the dollars we now dedicate
to distributing print publications to depository libraries has fallen by at least 50 percent over the past decade.
In our Sales of Publications Program, we developed a plan to partner with private
sector sales and distribution providers who can expand Government publications
sales offerings to the public, implementing a key recommendation of a management
audit of GPO ordered by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees in Public Law 10555. The plan would also return a portion of the revenues to GPO. We
have issued a Request for Proposal for these services.

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We continued work on our Oracle enterprise system, which will replace a number
of labor intensive accounting and inventory functions with IT solutions, reducing
cost and speeding work throughput. Expanded employee training opportunities were
also made available, ranging from new offerings on the shop floor to transformational leadership seminars for all supervisors and managers. Our Digital
Conversion System will also provide new retraining opportunities.
Although the GPO is not subject to the Government Performance and Results Act
(GPRA), we take the spirit and intent of its provisions seriously, particularly its emphasis on performance measurement. During the year we worked to design systems
to provide quantitative measurement in evaluating the progress of our strategic and
management initiatives, and in this request we are seeking funds to implement that
system.
Progress toward our goal to relocate the GPO to new facilities moved ahead in
fiscal year 2005 with the delivery of a formal plan for this project by our expert real
estate advisory consultant. The plan, along with draft legislative language to authorize the project, was submitted to our oversight and Appropriations Committees
accompanied by legislative briefings. We also began work on a plan to establish an
ancillary production site for passports and other essential Government documents,
and will be consulting further with our oversight committee on this matter this
year.
FISCAL YEAR 2007 REQUEST

Our fiscal year 2007 appropriations request is designed to provide for:

Continuation of our congressional printing and binding operations and information dissemination services at required levels;
Essential investment in projects to continue the transformation of the Federal
Depository Library Program to a predominately electronic basis, by improving
the cataloging, preservation, authentication, and provision of public access to
electronic Federal Government information; and
Investment in information technology to improve the efficiency and effectiveness
of GPOs operations, and completion of the program we have begun to retrain
GPOs workforce to meet changing technology demands.
Congressional Printing and Binding.For the Congressional Printing and Binding Appropriation, which covers printing and related services for Congress, we are
requesting $100,285,000. This is an increase of $13,076,000 over the level provided
for fiscal year 2006. As you know, the funding level provided for this appropriation
in fiscal year 2006 is equal to fiscal year 2005, minus the one percent rescission.
The increase is required to cover mandatory pay and price level changes and projected changes in specific congressional printing categories based on historical data,
and is partially offset by ongoing improvements in productivity. Mandatory items
include funding for the production of the 2006 Edition of the U.S. Code, which by
law is fully updated and issued every six years by the Office of the Law Revision
Counsel, as well as required support capabilities residing at the alternative computing facility. Our request also provides funding to begin investment in a new generation of publishing systems that will be capable of fully supporting Congresss current and future information product needs.
Salaries and Expenses Appropriation.For the Salaries and Expenses Appropriation of the Superintendent of Documents, we are requesting $43,000,000, an increase of $9,996,000 over the level provided for fiscal year 2006. This appropriation
provides for the cataloging, indexing, and distribution of Government publications
to Federal Depository and International Exchange libraries and other recipients designated by law.
The increase is necessary for mandatory pay and price level changes, increased
information technology support costs, and distribution of the 2006 edition of the
U.S. Code to depository libraries and other recipients as required by law. Equally
as important, our request includes funding for essential investments to sustain our
commitment to meeting the changing needs of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) in the digital era. For fiscal year 2005, 71 percent of all new titles
made available to the FDLP were in online format only, while an additional 21 percent of new titles were in electronic and one or more tangible formats such as print
or microfiche. Only 8 percent of new were made available in print only. In other
words, 92 percent of new titles in the program were made available online, whether
or not there were tangible equivalents.
As this data shows, the FDLP is now a predominately electronic program. The
funding increase we are seeking will nurture and sustain the digital transformation
of the FDLP, expanding the availability of the programs resources nationwide while
providing for essential improvements to ensure permanent access and authenticity.

301
The projects we are proposing include digital conversion of GPOs pre-1976 cataloging records to expand the availability of our online catalog resource; targeted capital investment for authentication and other technologies supporting GPO Access;
authentication and cataloging of Web-harvested documents; and essential training
for depository librarians and other user support.
Our request is also designed to advance another key initiative of our strategic vision for the future. In cooperation with the Library of Congress and the National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA), we are developing an agreement
under which the three agencies will make a concerted effort to digitize and provide
online public access to Federal documents reaching back to the Nations earliest
days. As a result of this effort, the comprehensive historical collection of Federal
publicationsreports, legislation, congressional proceedings, executive orders, presidential papers, regulations, and morewill be available for search and retrieval at
the push of a button from any library, classroom, office, or home. We are now involved in a demonstration project for legacy digitization.
As our society becomes increasingly electronic, the demand for access to Government informationincluding information that until now has been available only in
printis growing. Several elements of both the public and private sectors have
begun to respond to need for retrospective digitization to meet that demand and reduce costs to libraries. These efforts are commendable, but with their proliferation
there is a growing need for an approach that will ensure standardization, comprehensiveness, and efficiency while preventing wasteful overlap and duplication of
effort. I have met on this subject with the Librarian of Congress and the Archivist
of the United States and we expect to conclude an agreement on this effort in the
near future. While GPO will fund its role in this effort from available resources, our
request for fiscal year 2007 includes $2 million to provide data tagging and related
technical support for newly digitized content that is made available to the FDLP.
Revolving Fund.For GPOs revolving fund, we are requesting an appropriation
of $8,231,000, an increase of $6,251,000 over the level provided for fiscal year 2006.
This will provide funds to acquire essential information technology infrastructure
and systems development, including risk reduction and security enhancements, computer-aided manufacturing, replacement of our antiquated job-cost reporting system,
implementation of a Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) compliance
system, and other measures. Our request will also be used to complete the training
program we have initiated with fiscal year 2006 funds to define GPOs workforce
needs, assess the skills of current employees, identify the gaps, and design and deliver targeted, just-in-time training to close those gaps. A well-trained workforce and
modernized information technology architecture are prerequisites to implementing
our vision of GPOs digital future.
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee on Legislative Branch Appropriations, thank you for all the support you have shown for our efforts to transform
GPO. With your support we can continue our record of achievement. We look forward to working with you in your review and consideration of our request.
FACILITY RELOCATION

Senator ALLARD. Well, thank you for your testimony, Mr. James.
We have just a few questions here.
It appears that your plans to move the Government Printing Office out of the current facility are not moving along quite as expeditiously as you would like. If the Government Printing Office is unable to relocate in the near future, how will that impact the Government Printing Offices plans to further modernize its operations?
Mr. JAMES. Well, we are not going to let a building stop us. I
mean, the Government Printing Office is not about a building. It
is about systems and people. And so we are not about to let a
building stop us. But I think this is maybe even more personal to
me as the leader of the GPO. It just to me is a travesty to allow
taxpayer money to be flushed down the drain the way we are doing
this.
I mean, we can do a better job. And that is what I have been
working at, to try and give the taxpayers a better deal on this. And
I know that you have, too. This subcommittee and the House Ap-

302
propriations Committee have been working with us all the way
along on trying to get this done, too.
TOP CHALLENGES

Senator ALLARD. What are the top challenges that you face or
the Government Printing Office faces? And what advice would you
provide for your successor?
Mr. JAMES. Well, I think the things Ive talked about today are
the remaining big challenges in front of the Government Printing
Office. The most important things, I think, that I have done over
the last almost 4 years are to make certain we had the right people
in the right positions and then to help them to develop a long-term
strategy that would serve the American public and serve Congress,
and then to help get that program off and going. And we are there.
The remaining big challenges include the redevelopment of the
building. And, you know, it is not just a matter of getting congressional approval to proceed. Once we have that approval, there is a
big challenge of finding a new location for the GPO and hiring an
architect and building a building and equipping that building. So
that is probably the largest challenge.
And I think that everything surrounding digital information is
the other challenge. I think Mike Wash and his team are doing a
superb job of building the system, but it will require continual attention and strict attention to make sure it is successful.
BUDGET PRIORITIES

Senator ALLARD. Given the budget constraints we are faced with,

it is unlikely that we are going to be able to come up with a 24percent increase. It will probably be something less than that. And
as I have asked of all the other agencies, I hope you can give us
a prioritized list, because that would be very helpful as we negotiate with the House on this, if we know which things are most important to you. I would hate to think that in the negotiating process we gave up the most valuable for something of less importance.
Mr. JAMES. Sure.
Senator ALLARD. So it would help us to make sure that your
agency gets its badly needed resources in the proper priority.
Mr. JAMES. We would be pleased to do that. And I think we have
a good relationship with staff and would be pleased to work with
them and help them understand the priorities.
Senator ALLARD. If you could do that, for the record, we would
appreciate it.
Mr. JAMES. Yes, sir, be happy to.
[The information follows:]
GPO FISCAL YEAR 2007 APPROPRIATIONS PRIORITIES
CONGRESSIONAL PRINTING AND BINDING
In millions

Fiscal year 2006 Enacted Level ...............................................................................................................................

Fiscal Year 2007 Requested Level ..........................................................................................................................

$87.2
100.3

Total Increase Originally Requested ...........................................................................................................

13.1

303
Approximately $12.1 million is needed for essential requirements, including funding for mandatory pay and price changes to cover contractual wage agreements and
inflation, an adjustment to the fiscal year 2006 base to cover a projected shortfall
for fiscal year 2006 (which will be funded from unexpended balances of prior year
appropriations transferred to the revolving fund last year), anticipated workload increases in several congressional printing categories based on projections from historical data, and the production of official and bylaw copies of the 2006 edition of the
U.S. Code in accordance with statutory requirements.
Additional requirements of $1 million include funding for a planned replacement
of GPOs Microcomp composition system, which will require the approval of the
Joint Committee on Printing.
In millions

Essential Requirements:
Mandatory pay and price changes .................................................................................................................
Adjustment to fiscal year 2006 base .............................................................................................................
Anticipated workload increases ......................................................................................................................
Production of 2006 U.S. Code ........................................................................................................................

$2.3
1.4
3.7
4.7

Total ............................................................................................................................................................

12.1

Additional Requirements: Microcomp replacement .................................................................................................

1.0

SALARIES AND EXPENSES

In millions

Fiscal Year 2006 Enacted Level ..............................................................................................................................

Fiscal Year 2007 Requested Level ..........................................................................................................................

$33.0
43.0

Total Increase Originally Requested ...........................................................................................................

10.0

With the exception of the mandatory pay increases and the printing and distribution of copies of the 2006 edition of the U.S. Code to depository libraries, GPOs requested increase of approximately $10 million covers projects directly related to the
broad range of information life-cycle activities required by the congressionally-mandated transition to a primarily electronic Federal Depository Library Program
(FDLP) and to building the infrastructure to support it. Because these activities are
interrelated and support each other, GPO must proceed with multiple priorities to
meet Title 44 mandates in the online information environment.
If funding at the originally requested level is not an option, GPO will scale back
digital initiatives or slow down progress on the electronic transition rather than
pursue one or two priorities to the exclusion of others. Elimination or more substantial reduction of any of these activities through funding prioritization will necessitate consultation with the depository library community.
If appropriations cuts are required GPO could still support its mission with essential requirements totaling approximately $7.1 million, a 29 percent reduction from
the initial request for the Salaries and Expenses Appropriation. These requirements
include mandatory pay and related costs, printing and distribution of the 2006 edition of the U.S. Code for depository libraries, expenses due to investment in IT and
GPOs Future Digital System (FDsys), FDLP training and user support of FDsys
(with funding reduced by 20 percent, or $265,000, from the original request), conversion of pre-1976 cataloging records (with funding reduced by 63 percent, or
$500,000; implementation of this project will be modified from a single multi-year
contract to multiple single-year contracts, with requests for funding to be made in
subsequent years), cataloging of web-harvested documents (with funding reduced by
10 percent, or $63,000), authentication of web-harvested and digitized documents
(with funding reduced by 10 percent, or $45,000), and capital expenses associated
with authentication and access.
Additional requirements shown below total approximately $2.9 million. They include funds for data tagging and processing new digitized content for access (while
a demonstration project for legacy digitization has been authorized by the Joint
Committee on Printing, GPO does not yet have authorization for the full legacy
digitization project, and if not provided for fiscal year 2007, funding could be requested in subsequent years once the project is approved), as well as restoration of
the reductions shown above for FDLP training and user support for FDsys, conversion of pre-1976 cataloging records, cataloging of web-harvested documents, authen-

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tication of web-harvested and digitized documents, and capital expenses associated
with authentication and access.
In millions

Essential Requirements:
Mandatory pay and related costs .............................................................................................................
U.S. Code 2006 edition, printing and distribution ...................................................................................
Expenses due to investment in IT and FDsys ..........................................................................................
FDLP training and user support of FDsys ................................................................................................
Conversion of pre-1976 cataloging records .............................................................................................
Cataloging of web-harvested documents .................................................................................................
Authentication of web-harvested and digitized documents .....................................................................
Capital expenses associated with authentication and access ................................................................

$0.8
2.0
1.2
1.1
.3
.6
.4
.7

Total ......................................................................................................................................................

7.1

Additional Requirements:
FDLP training and user support of FDsys ................................................................................................
Conversion of pre-1976 cataloging records .............................................................................................
Cataloging of web-harvested documents .................................................................................................
Authentication of web-harvested and digitized documents .....................................................................
Data tagging and processing new digitized content for access .............................................................
Total ......................................................................................................................................................

.3
.5
.05
.05
2.0
2.9

REVOLVING FUND
In millions

Fiscal Year 2006 Enacted Level ..............................................................................................................................

Fiscal Year 2007 Requested Level (Fiscal year 2007 request is a total of $3 million for training and $5.2
million for IT projects; fiscal year 2006 enacted provided $2 million for training) .........................................

$2.0

Total Increase Originally Requested ...........................................................................................................

6.2

8.2

Of the requested increase, approximately $1.0 million is needed for essential requirements, which represents an increase over the funds provided for fiscal year
2006 for workforce training and development to provide GPO employees with the
skills needed for GPOs digital future. Total funds approved for fiscal year 2006 for
training were $2 million; GPO is requesting a total of $3 million for training for fiscal year 2007.
Additional requirements of $5.2 million are requested for high risk infrastructure
replacement to cover 8 projects to mitigate high technical risk areas, a secure documents system infrastructure to provide IT support for GPOs secure and intelligent
documents business unit, a computer-aided manufacturing system to integrate
GPOs production systems with IT monitoring, replacement of GPOs outdated
PROBE system that provides job cost tracking, an application infrastructure to integrate GPO business systems into Oracle, a Government Performance and Results
Act (GPRA) compliance system to monitor and evaluate program performance, and
a metadata repository to standardize data used in GPOs business systems.
In millions

Essential Requirements: Workforce retraining .........................................................................................................

$1.0

Additional Requirements:
High risk infrastructure replacement .............................................................................................................
Secure documents system infrastructure .......................................................................................................
Computer-aided manufacturing ......................................................................................................................
PROBE replacement ........................................................................................................................................
Oracle application infrastructure ....................................................................................................................
GPRA compliance system and implementation ..............................................................................................
Metadata repository ........................................................................................................................................

2.3
.8
.5
.5
.5
.3
.3

Total ............................................................................................................................................................

5.2

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EMPLOYEE RETRAINING

Senator ALLARD. Now Congress approved $2 million in the Government Printing Office 2006 budget for workforce training. Can
you update us on your efforts on that?
Mr. JAMES. You want to know how we spent that money?
Senator ALLARD. Yes. We want to know what the results are.
Mr. JAMES. I would like to submit the specifics for the record.
But I will give you sort of a general view of what we have done
with this.
In my judgment, the most important thing was to make certain
our 330 supervisors are completely trained in what being a supervisor is all about. In the past, we moved people from the workforce
that were skilled craftsmen just almost based on seniority into
these, what I call, these leadership positions without sufficient
background and training of what it takes to be a leader.
So the first thing we did was focus on helping all of our roughly
330 supervisors/leaders to understand their responsibilities and
what they need to do in a digital world and actually in a world of
today. And we used the strategic vision document as the working
tool of how to get them to understand what their role was and how
to carry this down to employees.
We then set up a new business unit that we call the digital
media group. And this is the group that will do the conversion of
the legacy documents of the Government into digital documents.
And this will create hands-on training for hopefully several hundred GPO employees over the next few years as we complete that
digitization. So those are the big initiatives that were undertaken
in the last year. But I will give you a full explanation of that for
the record.
Senator ALLARD. Thank you.
USE

OF

GPO TRAINING FUNDS

For fiscal year 2006, Congress appropriated $1.9 million (after rescission) to
GPOs revolving fund for workforce development and training.
Approximately $500,000 has been allocated to a demonstration project for the
digitization of selected legacy Government documents that has been approved by the
Joint Committee on Printing. The project will train a targeted element of GPOs
workforce in essential digitization skills.
Approximately $100,000 has been allocated to the provision of training in PC
skills, electronic publishing, new pre-press technologies, customer service improvement, and apprentice training.
The balance of the funds are for a GPO-wide skills assessment and implementation of retraining and include the following: $170,000 for a needs analysis and skills
assessment, $630,000 for classroom training, $270,000 for e-training, $130,000 for
a Learning Management System, and $100,000 for career transition services.
ELECTRONIC PASSPORT PROGRAM

Senator ALLARD. What is the status of the electronic passport

program that you are working on with the State Department?
Mr. JAMES. That is one of the most challenging jobs that we have
had. The State Department is one of our best customers. And as
you know, this is a program that has been mandated by Congress.
And that is to include a biometric chip in all of the U.S. passports.
And the law is requiring that of other countries, too, that want to
have the visa exemption.

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We have been working for about 2 years on that program with
the State Department. We actually have working samples out in
the field right now. We are delivering official passports. I believe
in the last couple of weeks, we started delivering official passports
with chips and antennas. We have learned a lot in this process. We
probably have more knowledge than perhaps any other organization in the country at this point about what goes into dealing with
these chips in a paper product.
As a matter of fact, we have learned so much that we are looking
at sharing this with other agencies to meet some of their requirements, both for ID cards and for other kinds of secure and intelligent documents that the Government will need. I have come to
the conclusion that I think the Government Printing Office can be
of great service to other agencies in the development and maintaining of a proprietary Government technology that will help ensure
that documents cannot be counterfeited and they are authentic documents.
We are looking at doing this with some interesting models. We
are looking at getting in the business of producing ID cards.
Senator ALLARD. What kind of ID cards?
Mr. JAMES. These are the new ID cards that are required that
have RFD devices in them that will be for all agency employees.
And there we are looking at the possibility of doing a Governmentowned, contractor-operated plant within GPO facilities. In other
words, taking the best advantage of the private sector and their
know-how and how to officially manufacture, but yet keeping it
within a Government facility for the necessary security protections.
So we have learned at lot. We have made great progress. I think
this will be one of the fast-growing areas in the future for the Government Printing Office.
Senator ALLARD. So you actually have it in some passports now.
Mr. JAMES. Yes, we do.
Senator ALLARD. Is that part of the trial basis, or is this now just
part of routine procedure in those few that you have out there?
Mr. JAMES. I think you are asking me to speak for my customer
here, the State Department, on this. And it is my impression that
we are still moving cautiously. You know, with old U.S. passports,
I should say the former passports, we knew what would happen if
somebody left it in the trunk of their car or ran it through a washing machine. You know, we need more experience here in what
happens in the real world as people use these devices or these
passports, so that we can make certain that the manufacturing
techniques we have used will withstand as much as they possibly
can. So we are moving cautiously on this one.
FUTURE OF THE DEPOSITORY LIBRARY PROGRAM

Senator ALLARD. Thank you. You also said you are engaging the
depository library community in a dialogue on the future of the depository library system. What is the status of that effort?
Mr. JAMES. Well, let me put it this way. I think that together the
library community and the GPO have come a long way in the last
3 years. I began to discuss with the depositories a little over 3
years ago what I thought was going to be required in the digital

307
future. And there were, I think it is fair to say, some real skeptics
initially.
But as we have, over the last 3 years, worked so closely together
on taking a look at this, I think that probably it is best summed
up by a letter I think you recently received, signed by the presidents of the five largest library associations strongly endorsing the
direction that we are going. And I think that while we do not have
a complete solution yet, I think we are engaged in a very positive
way. We know we cannot please everybody. But it is our intention
to get to the point that we have a consensus within the community
of the best way to go forward with this.
Senator ALLARD. So you are in the discussion process right now.
Mr. JAMES. Yes, sir.
Senator ALLARD. And you have not decided exactly how you are
going to proceed from this point.
Mr. JAMES. That is absolutely correct.
Senator ALLARD. Thank you. That is all I need for your testimony. Thank you very much.
Mr. JAMES. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALLARD. We wish you well.
Mr. JAMES. Thank you.

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

STATEMENT OF DR. DONALD B. MARRON, ACTING DIRECTOR

Senator ALLARD. Good morning, Dr. Marron. We meet again

today. It seems like we have been seeing each other on a fairly regular basis here. You are the last panel for this morning. I would
ask that you, Dr. Marron, Acting Director of CBO, to present your
testimony on CBOs $37 million request. This is a 5.5-percent increase over fiscal year 2006 and supports current services.
Now, Dr. Marron, we understand you have done an excellent job
heading up the CBO since your appointment just a few months
ago. And we appreciate your service. Please go ahead with your
testimony.
Dr. MARRON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is a pleasure to be
here today. You have our written statement, so I will try to be very
brief. Let me start by thanking you for your past support of CBOs
budget request, most recently for the 2006 request.
As you know, CBOs mission is to provide the Congress with
timely, objective, nonpartisan information about budget and economic issues. It has been my great privilege to be with the agency
for about 6 months now and to be Acting Director since early this
year. And just on a personal note I would like to say I am just incredibly impressed with the enthusiasm and skill and esprit de
corps of the CBO and its people. I feel like we are doing an excellent job for the Congress. And I hope to keep that up.
As you say, our fiscal 2007 request is for $37 million, which
would be an increase of $1.9 million over our appropriation for
2006. It is an increase of 5.5 percent. This is pretty much a plain
vanilla request on our part. There are no new initiatives. We view
it as a current services budget. It allows us to maintain a level of
productivity, allows us to maintain our 235 FTEs, and hopefully allows us to, you know, continue the productivity that we have built
up in recent years. Hopefully, it is well documented in our submission.
Our budget is overwhelmingly for people. As we discussed the
other day, about 90 percent of the budget goes toward our people.
And in essence, that is what is driving our budget request this
year. Most of the request is concentrated in people, both because
of benefit increases, because of a cost of living adjustment (COLA),
and because of merit increases that we would expect to award to
people.
In addition, there is a component in there for IT. As you will recall, last year there was an across-the-board rescission. We, to get
through this year, focused most of that on our IT budget. We deferred a variety of projects. And so our budget request in essence
has a variety of those investments coming back in 2007 being funded.
(309)

310
I am happy to say that I believe CBO provides good value to the
Congress and through the Congress to the American people. It has
been true in the past, and we intend to make sure it is true in the
future.
PREPARED STATEMENT

And with that, happy to take any questions.

Senator ALLARD. Well, thank you, Dr. Marron.
[The statement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

DONALD B. MARRON

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, I am pleased to present the fiscal
year 2007 budget request for the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
CBO is a small legislative support agency. Its mission is to provide the Congress
with timely, objective, nonpartisan analyses of the budget and the economy and to
furnish the information and cost estimates required for the Congressional budget
process. That mission is its single program. Approximately 90 percent of CBOs appropriation is devoted to personnel, and the remaining 10 percent, to information
technology, equipment, supplies, and other small purchases.
The total current-services request for fiscal year 2007 is $37,026,000 a $1.9 million, or 5.5 percent, increase over the appropriation for fiscal year 2006 (after the
1 percent rescission). Although CBOs original projected increase from fiscal year
2006 to fiscal year 2007 was 4.4 percent, this request incorporates CBOs need to
restore resources that were eliminated in fiscal year 2006 by the rescission.
The requested increase is dominated by $1.7 million for increases in staff salaries
and benefits, which are estimated to grow by 5.3 percent in 2007. CBOs information
technology accounts will increase by $220,000, or 15.6 percent, primarily to restore
information technology funding that was reduced to meet the fiscal year 2006 rescission. The remainder of CBOs nonpersonnel budget will increase by 1.7 percent to
cover modest inflationary increases in various accounts.
With the requested funds for 2007, CBO plans to continue to support the Congress in exercising its responsibilities for the budget of the U.S. government. CBO
supports the Congressional budget process by providing analyses required by law or
requested by the Committees on the Budget, the Committees on Appropriations, the
Senate Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Ways and Means, other
committees, and individual Members. Contributing in various forms, CBO:
Reports on the outlook for the budget and the economy to help the Congress
prepare for the legislative year, including the construction of baseline budget
projections to serve as neutral benchmarks for gauging the effects of spending
and revenue proposals;
Estimates the effects of the Presidents budgetary proposals on outlays and revenues, including effects resulting from impacts on macroeconomic activity;
Assists the Committees on the Budget in developing the Congressional budget
resolution by providing alternative spending and revenue paths and the estimated effects of a variety of budget options;
Reports on programs and activities for which authorizations for appropriations
were not enacted or are scheduled to expire;
Estimates the costs of legislative proposals, including formal cost estimates for
bills reported by committees of the House and Senate, which also identify the
costs of mandates on states, localities, Indian Tribes, and the private sector;
Conducts policy studies of governmental activities having major economic and
budgetary impacts;
Provides the Congress with analyses of policy options, but not policy recommendations, to alter federal outlays and receipts in the near term and over
the longer horizon to help the Congress make budgetary choices, set priorities,
and adapt to changes in circumstances;
Constructs statistical, behavioral, and computational models to project shortand long-term costs and revenues of government programs and their effects on
the economy; and
Reports on emerging economic developments (such as natural disasters) and
their possible budgetary consequences.
In fiscal year 2007, CBOs request will allow the agency to build on current efforts
specifically, the request:
Supports a workload of more than 1,700 formal estimates of the costs of proposed or enacted legislation and of mandates included in legislation (generally

311
conveyed in about 600 separate documents) and approximately 160 analytical
reports and other products, as well as a heavy schedule of Congressional testimony;
Supports 235 FTEs, the same number as in 2006, including an across-the-board
pay adjustment of 2.7 percent for staff earning a salary of less than $100,000
(which is consistent with the pay adjustment requested by other legislative
branch agencies);
Funds a projected 5.4 percent increase in the cost of benefits and funds a combination of promotions and merit increases, including pay adjustments for staff
whose salary exceeds $100,000 and who therefore do not receive an automatic
annual increase;
Supports CBOs share of the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board
(FASAB) budget requirement ($443,025);
Sustains management and professional training and development ($152,400);
Maintains and continues development of CBOs financial management system
($101,390);
Supports the agencys telecommunications services to the Alternate Computing
Facility ($75,000); and
Allows for upgrading Microsoft Office software throughout the agency ($75,000).
Before I close, I would like to point out that over the past two fiscal years, CBO
has streamlined operations while increasing services to the Congress and meeting
ever growing requirements. Those efforts, which have included working in cooperation with other legislative branch agencies and other government organizations,
have focused on reducing costs in information technology; library operations; printing and reproduction; storage services; and financial management, including payroll
processing, auditing, and reporting. Consequently, the fiscal year 2007 submission
requests the funding required for CBO to maintain its current services.
I would also like to report that CBO received a clean opinion on its fiscal year
2004 financial statements.
In addition, I would like to state that the agency is committed to applying many
principles of the Government Performance Results Act as discussed in the Senates
fiscal year 2006 report.
Finally, I would like to thank the Committee for its support of CBOs 2006 budget
request. The funding provided this year will allow CBO to continue to provide the
Congress with vital analyses as well as enable the agency to make cost-effective investments to enhance productivity and reduce costs.
PREPARATION OF REPORTS TO CONGRESS

Senator ALLARD. Now, in the past 2 years, CBO has increased

the number and reduced the preparation time of reports for the
Congress. That is admirable. Would you explain to the subcommittee how you managed to accomplish that?
Dr. MARRON. Absolutely. I would say the key to that really is
good management, to establishing timelines, deadlines, and encouraging folks to meet those. There are always some slippages, but,
you know, to have guideposts for people to strive for, and then also
to have a culture in which we make a lot of effort up front to make
sure that the projects that we choose to undertake are ones that
we can get through the entire process to see the light of day, to
make sure that we have requests whenever possible from Members
of Congress, and then just to carry that forward.
So, I would ascribe that essentially to good management.
ONE PERCENT RESCISSION

Senator ALLARD. Now in fiscal year 2006, a 1-percent rescission

was applied to all the agencies. The one exception would have been
the Department of Veterans Affairs. What was the impact of that
reduction on your activities?
Dr. MARRON. The primary impact on us was to defer a variety
of information technology investments, upgrading servers, upgrading PCs. Some of those have some flexibility in the timing of those.

312
And we decided to put them out of this year and push them into
next year.
Senator ALLARD. And that is reflected in this years budget?
Dr. MARRON. Exactly right. You will see that there is a larger
percentage increase in the IT budget, somewhere in the 11-percent
rangeand a significant part of that increase is essentially those
investments showing up in 2007.
BUDGETARY ANALYSIS OF DRAFT LEGISLATION

Senator ALLARD. I see. Now I understand CBO has had a draft

of Senator Lotts legislation to redevelop the Government Printing
Office facility since December. We had a discussion about that in
the panel before you. As I understand it, until the bill is scored,
Senator Lott is reluctant to move forward. What is the status of
your efforts to provide a budgetary analysis of this draft legislation
to the Rules Committee?
Dr. MARRON. Our people are definitely working on it. The proposal raises some challenging issues which raise some nuance scoring issues, but we are working to expedite and it should be available quite soon.
Senator ALLARD. I would urge you move ahead with that. Is it
possible for you to give us a commitment on a date?
Dr. MARRON. I cannot right now, but let me check with my folks
back in the office, and I will get back to you.
Senator ALLARD. Okay. I think it is important for us to get the
Government Printing Office issue settled as fast as we possibly can.
If you can get that to us quickly, we would all appreciate it.
Dr. MARRON. Okay. Absolutely.
CONCLUSION OF HEARINGS

Senator ALLARD. Very good. I do not have any other questions.

You got off kind of easy.
Dr. MARRON. So I will thank you for that.
Senator ALLARD. Thank you for your testimony.
And this subcommittee stands in recess.
[Whereupon, at 11:45 a.m., Wednesday, May 3, the hearings
were concluded, and the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene
subject to the call of the Chair.]

LIST OF WITNESSES, COMMUNICATIONS, AND

PREPARED STATEMENTS
Page

Allard, Senator Wayne, U.S. Senator From Colorado:

Opening Statement of ......................................................... 75, 167, 199, 223, 269
Questions Submitted by................................................................................. 45, 261
Statement of ......................................................................................................
1
Ayers, Stephen, Chief Operating Officer, Architect of the Capitol ...................... 141
Billington, James H., Librarian of Congress; Chairman of the Board, Open
World Leadership Program, Library of Congress ..............................................
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................

1
4

Brown, Beth Hughes, Budget and Finance Officer, Office of Compliance ..........

269

Candelaria, Alma, Deputy Executive Director, Office of Compliance .................

Chrisler, Tamara E., Acting Executive Director, Office of Compliance ..............
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Summary Statement of ....................................................................................
Cylke, Kurt, Director, Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress .................................................................................................

269
269
271
269
1

Doby, Chris, Financial Clerk, Office of the Secretary, U.S. Senate ....................
75
Dodaro, Gene L., Chief Operating Officer, Government Accountability Office .. 223
Durbin, Senator Richard J., U.S. Senator From Illinois:
Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 142
Questions Submitted by................................................................................. 50, 263
Eveleth, Peter, General Counsel, Office of Compliance ........................................

269

Hantman, Alan M., FAIA, Architect of the Capitol................................. 141, 199,

Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Summary Statement of ....................................................................................
Harper, Sallyanne, Chief Administrative Officer, Government Accountability
Office .....................................................................................................................
Huff, Julia, Chief of Operations, Copyright Office, Library of Congress ............

217
146
143

James, Bruce R., Public Printer, Government Printing Office ............................

Opening Remarks of .........................................................................................
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Jones, Mary Suit, Assistant Secretary of the Senate, Office of the Secretary,
U.S. Senate ...........................................................................................................

223
1
295
295
298
75

Livingood, Hon. Wilson, Chairman, Capitol Police Board and Capitol Guide
Service, Capitol Guide Board.......................................................................... 199, 217
Prepared Statements of ............................................................................... 200, 218
Statement of ...................................................................................................... 199
Marron, Dr. Donald B., Acting Director, Congressional Budget Office ...............
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
McGaffin, Chris, Acting Chief of Police, U.S. Capitol Police Board ....................
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Statement of ......................................................................................................
Mulhollan, Daniel P., Director, Congressional Research Service, Library of
Congress ................................................................................................................
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................

(i)

309
310
199
201
201
1
25

ii
Page

Peters, Marybeth, Register of Copyrights, Library of Congress, Prepared

Statement of .........................................................................................................
14
Pickle, Hon. William H., Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper, U.S. Senate ............................................................................................................ 167, 199, 217
Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 170
Statement of ...................................................................................................... 168
Reynolds, Emily, Secretary of the Senate, Office of the Secretary, U.S. Senate ..........................................................................................................................
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Robfogel, Susan, Chairwoman, Board of Directors, Office of Compliance ..........
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Summary Statement of ....................................................................................

75
78
269
275
275

Schornagel, Karl, Inspector General, Library of Congress ...................................

Scott, Donald L., Deputy Librarian of Congress, Library of Congress ................
Shedd, Steve, Chief Financial Officer, Government Printing Office ...................
Stevens, Tom, Director of Visitor Services, Capitol Guide Board ........................
Strader, George G., Controller, Government Accountability Office .....................

1
1
295
217
223

Walker, David M., Comptroller General of the United States, Government

Accountability Office ............................................................................................
Prepared Statement of .....................................................................................
Wash, Mike, Chief Technical Officer, Government Printing Office .....................
Weiss, Mark, Director, Capitol Power Plant, Architect of the Capitol ................

223
233
295
141

SUBJECT INDEX
Page

ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL

Accomplishments .....................................................................................................
Annual Operating Budget .......................................................................................
Architect of the Capitol Chief Financial Officer Selection ...................................
Capital Projects:
Budget ...............................................................................................................
And the Library Logistics Warehouse Prioritization .....................................
Capitol Visitor Center Budget ................................................................................
Construction Overhead Costs .................................................................................
Contract Management Improvements ....................................................................
Dirksen Infrastructure Improvement Project ........................................................
Employee Safety in the Tunnels .............................................................................
Fiscal Year 2007 Budget:
Concerns ............................................................................................................
Increase .............................................................................................................
Government Accountability Office Reports on Power Plant Staffing ..................
Internal Controls Implementation .........................................................................
Office of Compliance Complaint .............................................................................
Overall Planning Process ........................................................................................
Performance-based Budget .....................................................................................
Safety Hazards in the Utility Tunnels ...................................................................
Senate Office Building Improvements ...................................................................
Stewardship and Prioritizing Projects ...................................................................
Tracking Office of Compliance Citations ...............................................................
Tunnel Repair Plans ................................................................................................
Utility Tunnel Conditions .......................................................................................
Welcoming Remarks ................................................................................................
West Refrigeration Plant Project ............................................................................
Challenges .........................................................................................................

151
149
164
148
159
150
161
164
160
158
141
154
163
164
157
147
163
141
150
146
159
159
155
141
162
162

CAPITOL GUIDE BOARD

Budget Request ........................................................................................................
Capitol Visitor Center Opening ..............................................................................
Certificate of Occupancy ..........................................................................................
Full-time Equivalents ..............................................................................................
Hiring for the Capitol Visitor Center .....................................................................
Primary Function .....................................................................................................

218
219
221
220
220
217

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

Budgetary Analysis of Draft Legislation ...............................................................
One Percent Rescission ...........................................................................................
Preparation of Reports to Congress .......................................................................

312
311
311

GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE

Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................
Background on Missile Defense Article .................................................................
Band II Restructuring .............................................................................................
Calculating the Total Employee Cost to the Government ....................................
Changes to the Government Accountability Offices Pay System in the Past
Year .......................................................................................................................
(iii)

260
225
253
250
252

iv
Page

Comparative Analysis of the Government Accountability Offices Supply-Demand Imbalance ...................................................................................................

Cost for 50 Additional Full-time Equivalents .......................................................
Criteria for Coming On and Off the Government Accountability Offices High
Risk List ................................................................................................................
Early Retirements ...................................................................................................
Employee Perception of New Pay System .............................................................
Ensuring the Government Accountability Office Reports are Impartial ............
Government Accountability Offices (GAOs):
Fiscal Year 2005 Accomplishments .................................................................
Fiscal Year 2007:
Budget Request .........................................................................................
Request to Support the Congress .............................................................
High Risk:
List ..............................................................................................................
Program ......................................................................................................
Market-based Pay System ...............................................................................
Policy on Engagements Pending Litigation ....................................................
Quality Control Procedures .............................................................................
History and Importance of the Government Accountability Offices High Risk
List ........................................................................................................................
Lessons Learned:
From Missile Defense Engagement .................................................................
In Implementing Market-based Pay ...............................................................
Mr. Walkers Response to the New York Times Article .......................................
New York Times Article on Missile Defense Program .........................................
Outcomes of Our Work and the Road Ahead ........................................................
Performance, Results, and Plans ............................................................................
Potential for Government-wide Use of Market-based Pay ...................................
Prior Discussions With the Congress on Missile Defense ....................................
Staffing up to Reduce Backlogs ..............................................................................

257
249
260
251
254
228
231
232
235
258
247
252
227
227
259
225
256
224
223
238
236
255
226
256

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

Budget Priorities ......................................................................................................
Congressional Printing and Binding ......................................................................
Electronic Passport Program ..................................................................................
Employee Retraining ...............................................................................................
Facility Relocation ...................................................................................................
Fiscal Year 2007 Request ........................................................................................
Future of the Depository Library Program ...........................................................
GPO Fiscal Year 2007 Appropriations Priorities ..................................................
Revolving Fund ........................................................................................................
Salaries and Expenses .............................................................................................
Top challenges ..........................................................................................................
2005 Results .............................................................................................................
Use of GPO Training Funds ...................................................................................

302
302
305
305
301
300
306
302
304
303
302
298
305

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Acquisitions Budget Request ..................................................................................
Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................
Analog-Digital Transition .......................................................................................
Architect of the CapitolLibrary of Congress Buildings and Grounds ..............
Building the Library for the Future .......................................................................
Capitol Visitor Center .............................................................................................
Cassette Machine Replacement ..............................................................................
Celebration of American Creativity .......................................................................
Congressional Research Service Realignment ...................................................... 23,
Savings ..............................................................................................................
Consultation With Congressional Research Service Staff ....................................
Copyright:
Deposits Facility ...............................................................................................
Records Preservation ........................................................................................
Reengineering Program ...................................................................................
Digital:
Competencies ....................................................................................................
Talking Books:
Audit ...........................................................................................................

3
45
40
8
6
41
39
42
48
28
29
21
46
31
47
41

v
Page

DigitalContinued
Talking BooksContinued
Program ......................................................................................................
Directors ReportFiscal Year 2006 Staffing Changes, November 3, 2005 .......
Federal Agency Overhead .......................................................................................
Fee Service Activities ..............................................................................................
Fiscal Year 2007 Budget Request .......................................................................... 18,
Future Fee Increase ................................................................................................
GENPAC ...................................................................................................................
Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) ..............................................
And Library Planning ......................................................................................
Impact of Retirements .............................................................................................
Introduction of Inspector General ..........................................................................
Library of Congress .................................................................................................
Logistics Center .......................................................................................................
Cost ....................................................................................................................
Review ............................................................................................................... 20,
Management Initiatives ..........................................................................................
National Audio-Visual Conservation CenterCulpeper ......................................
Status ................................................................................................................
National Audio-Visual Conservation CenterPackard Contribution .................
Open World Leadership Center ..............................................................................
Open World Leadership Program ...........................................................................
Open World Strategic Plan .....................................................................................
Options for Displaced Employees ...........................................................................
Other Budget Priorities ...........................................................................................
Partnerships With National Libraries ...................................................................
Performance Measurement .....................................................................................
Proposed Changes to Legislative Language ..........................................................
Reengineering Project Delays .................................................................................
Research Agenda .....................................................................................................
Results-based Decisionmaking ...............................................................................
Retirement Incentives .............................................................................................
Review of Copyright Office Work and Accomplishments .....................................
Technology and Staffing ..........................................................................................
The Library of Congress of Today ..........................................................................
The Librarys:
Fiscal Year 2007 Budget Request ...................................................................
Funding Priorities ............................................................................................
Workforce Transformation................................................................................. 2, 30,
World Digital Library ..............................................................................................

38
56
21
49
25
19
45
20
21
31
22
4
4
19
22
26
3
32
33
9
44
44
29
3
43
34
8
32
25
37
29
14
24
5
6
6
46
43

OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE
Air Sampling ............................................................................................................
Architect of the Capitol Plan to Remedy Tunnel Issues .......................................
Asbestos Issues in the Tunnels and Vaults as of May 2, 2006 ............................
Biennial Safety and Health Inspections ................................................................
Complaint Against Architect of the Capitol About the Tunnels ..........................
Dispute Resolution ...................................................................................................
Distance Between Egress Points ............................................................................
Educating our Constituency ....................................................................................
Findings by Risk Assessment Code ........................................................................
Fire Alarm System in the Capitol Visitor Center .................................................
First Office of Compliance Complaint Under the Occupational Safety and
Health Act .............................................................................................................
Management Support ..............................................................................................
New FTE Positions Requested ................................................................................
Occupational Safety and Health Administration Approved Methods for Abating Asbestos ..........................................................................................................
Safety and Health Enforcement .............................................................................

289
282
284
277
281
272
290
273
277
292
278
273
270
288
272

U.S. CAPITOL POLICE BOARD

Accolade:
For U.S. Capitol Police Department ...............................................................
To Departing Chief Gainer ..............................................................................
Capitol Police General Counsel Discussion ...........................................................

204
200
208

vi
Page

Chief Administrative Officer:

Action Plan ........................................................................................................
Responsibilities .................................................................................................
Discussion on:
Comp Time Balance Reduction .......................................................................
New Police Chief Selection Status ..................................................................
Explanation of Fiscal Year 2007 Increases ...........................................................
Implementation of New Financial Management System .....................................
Inspector General Selection Status ........................................................................
Library of Congress:
Attrition and Other New Position Requests ...................................................
Merge Progress .................................................................................................
Master Training PlanCapitol Police ...................................................................
Nonpersonnel Increases ..........................................................................................
Reduction in Police Overtime Explained ...............................................................
Screening Vehicles at Library of Congress ............................................................
Summary of Remaining Chief Administrative Officer Initiatives .......................
Tiger Team and Dignitary Protection Division New Positions Discussed ..........

210
209
207
213
204
211
214
205
207
214
205
206
208
211
206

U.S. SENATE
OFFICE

OF THE

SECRETARY

Administrative Offices .............................................................................................

Capitol Visitor Center .............................................................................................
Continuity of Operations and Emergency Preparedness Planning .....................
Disbursing Office Information Technology ............................................................
Federal Election Commission Online Filing ..........................................................
Financial Operations: Disbursing Office ................................................................
Implementing Mandated Systems ..........................................................................
Legislative Offices ....................................................................................................
Lobbying Disclosure Reports ..................................................................................
Maintaining and Improving Current and Historic Legislative, Financial and
Administrative Services .......................................................................................
New Technology in the Senate ...............................................................................
Presenting the Fiscal Year 2007 Budget Request .................................................
Study of Senate Staff Pay .......................................................................................
SERGEANT

AT

ARMS

AND

82
138
79
139

DOORKEEPER

Challenges for Next Year ........................................................................................

Custodial Workers for the Senate Capitol Visitor Center Expansion Space ......
Guiding Principals ...................................................................................................
Information Technology: A Strategy for Security and Customer Service ...........
Mail:
Processing Facility ............................................................................................
Safety .................................................................................................................
Operations and Support: Consistently Delivering Excellent Service ..................
Security and Emergency Preparedness .................................................................
Security and Preparedness: Protecting the Senate and Planning for the Unknown ....................................................................................................................
Sergeant at Arms Position JustificationFiscal Year 2007 ................................
Staffing Increases................................................................................................ 188,
Strategic:
Plan ....................................................................................................................
Planning ............................................................................................................
Telephone System Replacement .............................................................................
Vendor Deliveries ....................................................................................................

105
81
81
99
140
90
79
82
138

181
195
169
175
197
188
180
196
173
189
194
169
198
196
197